Keepers of the Elements
by Akela Victoire
Summary: For centuries, there have been the Keepers of the Elements: Water, Fire, Earth, Air and Energy. Their purpose is to maintain the balance of good and evil. When this great power is bestowed on 5 of the Total Drama girls, will they live up to the task?
1. Prologue

For this story, HyperForce has gladly volunteered to do artwork for it. A link to his DeviantArt gallery is in my profile.

**Disclaimer: **If I owned Total Drama, this would actually be on TV, not on a fanfiction website...

* * *

_Fifty years ago, there were 5 different elements. These were the elements of Water, Fire, Earth, Air and Energy._

_In that time also, there were the Keepers of the Elements. These 5 young women were responsible for defending the Earth against any major threats, whether from the planet itself, or from other worlds._

_Marissa, the first, was the keeper of the Water Element. She was a beautiful young woman, tall, with brown skin, black hair in a pixie cut and dark brown eyes. Like her element, she was a calm, collected individual, often acting as the 'brains' of the group. Also like her element, she was only dangerous when angered. And it takes a lot to anger her..._

_Aideen, the next, was the Keeper of the Fire Element. She had curly, waist-length red hair, hazel eyes and pale skin with freckles on her face. Quite unlike her element in nature, she was a shy, quiet individual; very timid. Only when it came to matters of being a Keeper was she ever bold; she knew her power had quite the destructive side to it._

_Deanna, the Keeper of the Earth Element had long, black hair, in pigtails, green eyes and tan skin. She was a person with very strong opinions about the world around her. She was also the type to have to see something to believe it. She is no pushover and will stand up to anyone for what she truly believes in, but because of this, she can sometimes come across as mean._

_Akari, the Keeper of the Air Element was Asian, with straight black hair to her shoulders, a fringe and narrow brown eyes. An easy going, light-hearted, cheerful girl, she is always willing to crack a joke to lighten the mood, even during battle to keep everyone's spirits up. She is also quite the prankster._

_Vesta, the last of the lot, was the Keeper of the Energy Element. Hers was the strongest of the lot, and as such, she was the leader. She had long, strawberry blonde hair in a high ponytail and ice-blue eyes. Being a leader suited her. She definitely enjoyed being in charge and having such a great responsibility. This goes to her head sometimes, however, and this has caused rifts in the group on more than one occasion._

These five had just led the magical world through a major war. Only they, and a few trusted others from Earth and other worlds were aware of the details of this war as most Earthlings had long ago stopped believing in magic after it went underground.

"It was worse than World War 2!" Marissa had exclaimed, voice hinting at a Jamaican accent. The five as well as some others, were now in an underground cavern discussing the events that had occurred mere days ago.

The cavern was well furnished, with large, comfortable chairs, tables, a kitchen and even a fireplace (Deanna and Aideen's work!). This was the place they had taken many of the fighters to recover. Many of those present in the room had some sort of injury and indeed most of them looked fatigued even though the war had ended days ago.

"Indeed it was, Marissa!" Akari exclaimed. She was sitting in a far corner.

"Let us just be glad that it is all over." Vesta stood up from her chair to address the group.

"You do know that it has been prophesied that the evil will rise again in another fifty years, just as it did for you, correct?" a man standing in the corner asked. He wore a silver hooded cape and his arms were folded across his chest.

"It has also been prophesied that if the next set of Keepers can defeat the evil once again, that time it will be gone for good, right Roth?" Aideen replied with a Scottish accent. She also displayed signs of injury including a cast on her arm a few bruises on her face and bandages on one of her legs.

"But, Aideen, it also says that if these Keepers are defeated, that evil will rule the planet for 1000 years!" Deanna exclaimed.

A short woman standing next to Roth, with pale skin, dark brown hair and violet eyes spoke up.

"If they are anything like you, I am sure that they can defeat whatever foe comes their way."

"Thanks Taren, but how do we know they are up to the task?" Deanna asked.

"How do we find them, in 50 years? We'll be old by then!" Vesta exclaimed.

"The Silver Star will help you find them. It will glow whenever their presence is sensed, or even when something linked to them is nearby, but it does not have to be them directly." Taren answered.

"Very well then." Vesta said, holding up the Silver Star.

It was really a small star-shaped piece of silver, very shiny, attached to a black leather chain, making it into a necklace. To the ordinary eye, it was a simple object, not of much value in terms of cash value, but to all present it was the most precious thing they had ever seen. Its value lay in the great power which it contained. It contained the power to find the next generation of Keepers, as it had done for them.

It glows with that element's signature colour when their Keeper is detected; silver for energy, blue for water, red for fire, green for earth and white for air.

"You will have to pass that onto the next Energy Keeper when you find her, Vesta. And she will have to find the others on her own..." Roth explained.

"And hopefully we will be there to provide assistance in training when the time comes." Marissa spoke, fiddling with a ball of water in hands.

"Hopefully..."

* * *

_Fifty Years Later..._

_Through the years, their lives had changed. They still had to keep some areas of Earth and other planets in check but the threat level was never as great as before._

_They had all moved on to start new lives, getting married; raising families, anything a normal human being would do. Aideen was the first of the lot to get married. This came as a surprise to them all. Heck, even Aideen herself was surprised at this fact since she believed a more outgoing member of the group would have found herself a husband first. __Marissa had been next, Vesta third, Akari fourth and Deanna last._

_They maintained contact through the years. Even though they all moved to separate provinces, they still managed to visit one another frequently. They helped each other out with the trials and tribulations of raising children from issues such as potty training to the rebellious teen years; from the college years to the problems of adult children wanting divorces from their spouses._

_Even Marissa's oldest child, her son Travis, had married Aideen's second daughter Jamilah and they were now happily expecting their third child._

But for now, an older Vesta sat in her living room watching her grandchildren play. She had agreed to watch them for the day while their parents were out. She did not look that much different as from fifty years ago, aside from graying hair and a few wrinkles here and there.

The oldest one present, Vanessa, nine, glanced up at the clock.

"Eek! It's time for Total Drama World Tour!" she squealed in excitement.

"Yay!" her little brothers Seth, seven and Rory, five came skidding from the room next door.

Vanessa grabbed up the remote and quickly turned on the TV.

"_Total Drama World Tour?"_ Vesta asked puzzled.

"Yeah, it's the hottest show on TV now, _duh!_" Vanessa shushed her grandmother.

"_Kids these days."_ Vesta thought, rolling her eyes and leaning back into her chair.

"Last time on _Total Drama World Tour..._" Chris McLean started the recap of the show.

As he did, something happened that the former Energy Keeper never expected.

The Silver Star, not used in almost fifty years, started to glow inside her pocket and floated out into her hand. Her grandchildren, entranced by the television, took no notice of this strange occurrence.

"The next Keepers must be on this show! I must call the others and tell of the developments!" she muttered to herself.

The star began to glow particularly brightly every time a particular girl appeared on the screen throughout the show.

"I think I've found my successor!" Vesta smiled in glee as she left the children to watch the show and hurried into the kitchen to make that very important phone call. After all, for something as important as this, she preferred to actually hear their words, than their thoughts through the telepathic Link they all shared.

"Marissa, Deanna, Aideen, Akari, I've found the next Energy Keeper!" she exclaimed into the mouthpiece.

"**What?**" Deanna exclaimed.

"About time!" Akari's voice exclaimed.

"For real?" Aideen's quiet voice broke through.

"Looks like it..." Marissa's calm voice was heard.

"Which one of your houses is free?" Vesta asked. "The grandkids are at home and I would rather not overexcite them with this news just yet..."

"Mine is!" Deanna exclaimed. "Tony and my daughter in law Allison took their children out for a few days and Troy went out with some friends of his!"

"Perfect! Vesta exclaimed. "We'll meet there. Aideen, Marissa and Akari, you know where to go."

"On it!" they all exclaimed hanging up.

As soon as they did, Vesta called her daughter and explained the situation.

"How convenient! Jack and I are almost home!" she said.

Soon enough, a car pulled up in the driveway and her daughter Amy and husband Jack got out. Her daughter looked like she had when she was younger, save for the dark brown hair she had inherited from her father.

"Well, what are you waiting for, Madame Energy Keeper; you have some new Keepers to find!" Jack exclaimed, flicking some black hair out of his eye.

Vesta smiled at them both as she bustled out the door.

"_What a life..._" she thought.


	2. A Visit to Alma

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"Okay, so what's the plan?"

The former Keepers sat together in Deanna's kitchen planning their next move. Since her family was away on vacation, it was the perfect place to meet to discuss such a sensitive issue.

"You say they are on television, right?" Marissa asked. Her hair was now grey and in braids. She stood in a corner with her arms folded.

"Yes..." Vesta replied.

"What is it called?"

"Total Drama World Tour."

"Isn't that a reality show?" Aideen asked, surprised. She sat at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee. It was cold now, so her hand glowed red for a few seconds and steam started to rise from the cup. Her hair was now straight and grey.

"Yes." Deanna answered from across the room. Her hair was still black, with some streaks of grey.

"How are we supposed to get to them without the cameras spotting them or us using our powers?" Akari asked. Her grey hair was pulled back into a ponytail.

"We'd have to freeze time for that and not even I can pull that off..." Vesta trailed off.

"It's probably time to take a trip to Alma and see Nasira and Hasim!" Marissa exclaimed.

"Not a bad idea! Isn't Nasira the Mistress of Time? And Hasim is pretty powerful himself! They will be able to help us!" Aideen stood up.

"All in favour of a trip to Alma, say I!" Vesta also stood up.

"I!"

"I!"

"I!"

"I!"

"That makes all of us then." Vesta pulled the Silver Star necklace from her pocket and put it on.

"Portal time..."

As she did, it started to glow bright silver. She waved her arms in front of her. They glowed silver for a second and then a large, silvery portal appeared in the kitchen.

"Ladies, I believe it's time to get dressed. I know we cannot transform anymore, but we still need to look presentable."

And with that, she snapped her fingers.

They were all suddenly outfitted with long, flowing robes. The only differences were where colour was concerned.

Marissa's robes were various shades of blue, Aideen's were various shades of red and orange, Deanna's were various shades of green, Akari's were white and Vesta's were silver and black.

"My granddaughter Amelie would be over herself with excitement if she were to see this! She always wanted to learn how to make portals with her fancy science projects..." Deanna said, smiling.

She and the others laughed as they entered the portal and it closed behind them.

* * *

The planet Alma, to which they were travelling, was a part of an alternate realm of existence that no ordinary human had ever even dreamed of, far less knowing that it, among other planets not in the Solar System existed.

Many different life forms existed on it; fairies, witches, wizards, vampires and werewolves, among others.

They arrived in the capital of this great planet, the city of Saurian. The planet on a whole was a very futuristic place, with flying cars and buildings that made the tallest, most modern buildings on Earth look like shacks. It was an incredibly clean place, and the people wore extremely bold, flashy clothing and had hairstyles that made the most outrageous hairstyles on Earth look tame.

A young woman walked by, glowed in flash of pink light and was suddenly wearing a hot pink minidress and had dragonfly wings and flew off. The people around her treated it as an ordinary occurrence.

The arrival of Keepers, former or current however, was not and soon people started to sit up and take notice. The city seemed to stop in its tracks. Cars pulled over and their occupants leaned out of the windows to get a better look.

People inside nearby buildings leaned out of windows and ran to the doors to see the Keepers up close.

The Keepers walked in an apex with Vesta at the point, Deanna and Marissa behind her on the left and Akari and Aideen behind her on the right.

The robes they wore and the way they walked gave the feeling that they possessed extreme power and made them quite an impressive and indeed intimidating sight; these were not people to be messed with.

Their destination was straight ahead; an extremely large white building with a glass dome as a roof. On the roof flew their national flag. It was a navy blue flag with green, red, white and gold diagonal stripes in the middle.

This was the headquarters of the President of this planet, President Johan Tavares, for whom Nasira and Hasim worked for in the capacity as advisors. Indeed, they had worked for many past presidents of Alma and would continue to do so for many years to come.

When they reached the large, imposing laser gates, the guard on the inside, dressed in a black suit waved them in as he entered the password to let them in.

As they walked down the halls, people quickly stepped out of their way.

"Good morning Keepers!" a woman walking past greeted. They gave her a nod of acknowledgement and continued toward their goal; a shiny black door with a silver handle.

"Wait a moment..." Vesta held up her hand to stop the others behind her.

The door opened of its own accord.

"Come in Keepers. I knew you would come to visit us today." A female voice called.

"Even after all these years, it still creeps me out when she does that..." Aideen shivered and Akari nodded in agreement.

They stepped into a large office. The room was filled with all kinds of technology, but in the center of it all was a large, polished, curved black desk with a black leather office chair facing away.

When the chair turned to the Keepers, it revealed a man, around his fifties or so, with jet black hair and a streak of grey hair going down the left side of his head. He wore a navy blue suit and a black tie. He stood up to welcome the girls.

"Welcome, welcome ladies!" he greeted them enthusiastically.

"Thank you President Tavares." Vesta said.

"Come to see Nasira and Hasim, haven't you?"

"Yes." Deanna spoke up.

"They'll be back soon. Nasira went to find her husband. He was in another part of the building."

"Ah. Okay."

A flash of purple light appeared beside them and when it cleared, two additional people, a man and woman, stood in the room.

She was a tall, regal-looking dark-skinned woman with long silver hair with purple highlights and deep, silver eyes. Her fingers had very long, sharp, purple nails and these fingers clutched a long, silver staff with a purple crystal on top. She wore a beautiful long flowing silver and purple velvet medieval styled dress.

Even though she was a beautiful woman, her face seemed very severe, as if she was not one who joked around often, or at all.

"She still scares me!" Akari mumbled.

The man who accompanied her on the other hand, was the opposite of scary. He had messy brown hair that stuck out in all directions and warm, playful honey-brown eyes that sparkled. He wore a brown hat with a red band around the middle, a brown tail coat, brown jeans and brown leather shoes. He held a simple walking stick with a silver unicorn's head on top.

"What are we all standing around here for! Let's have a seat!" he waved his cane and seats appeared for them all, who promptly sat down.

"Nasira..." Vesta said, looking towards the female, who nodded her head in acknowledgement of the greeting.

"... Hasim..." Vesta nodded towards the man, who merely smiled.

"Important news today, huh?" Hasim asked.

"Indeed."

"Vesta seems to have found the next Energy keeper, you see." Marissa explained.

"Oh?"

"Problem is, they're on a reality TV show and we can't have their powers or ours for that matter, revealed to the world when they aren't even ready to face the evil yet!" Marissa exclaimed.

"So, we need your help, to freeze time so we can get in and out to them when need be!" Vesta finished.

"Well..." Nasira paused and rubbed her chin as if in thought.

"So..." Deanna trailed off.

"I will give you something that could help. Stand up, you five."

They did as they were told.

Nasira walked past each, touching them on the shoulder with the staff.

They all glowed purple for mere seconds and then it stopped.

"What did that do?" Aideen asked.

"I have given you the ability to freeze time. Not to, rewind it, not to fast forward it, but merely to freeze it. Understood?"

The soon to be former Keepers all nodded.

"You are welcome to bring them here for training when you find them. The Mora district on the other side of this planet would be a perfect place for them to train. It is a deserted area with lots of space and plenty of each element for each to practice with." President Tavares spoke.

"Thank you, Mr. President." Vesta said, bowing.

"Now we must go. We need to find them and train them as quickly as possible before the evil gets to them..." Marissa declared.

"That you must." Hasim agreed.

"Thank you all for your help!" Aideen waved as they got up to leave.

"No problem at all!" Hasim waved, smiling.

"Strange how such a cheerful man like Hasim ever fell in love with such a scary woman..." Akari whispered to Deanna, who nodded.

Now back outside, Vesta made a portal once again to take them home.

"We're done here for now, so let's hop to it!" she exclaimed as they entered it.

* * *

In an unknown part of the universe, in a tall, dark foreboding castle, a figure wearing an orange-brown hooded cloak sat on a throne, in deep thought.

The room which he was in was a large, dimly lit room, lavishly decorated in a Goth-like fashion. A magnificent dark red carpet covered the majority of the dark stone floor. The eyes of the pale-faced people in the portraits hanging on the walls seemed to stare right down at him. The lights flickered and he glanced up to the inside balcony. The room had high, magnificent windows that stretched from the floor to the ceiling with heavy draperies shielding the room from the little sunlight outside.

"Master Radcliffe! Master Radcliffe!" a short, stout man ran into the room. He had short, messy blonde hair, maroon eyes and sickly pale skin.

"What is it_ now, _Carl?_"_ the hooded man asked in annoyance, sitting up.

"Master, it seems that the Keepers have found out who their replacements are supposed to be!" Carl breathed.

"Really now?" Radcliffe sat up.

"Yes, Master. Word is, they paid a visit to Alma today to see the Presidential advisors!"

"Hmmm... Do _you_ know who they are, Carl?" Radcliffe asked.

"I do not, Master. But I think the Keepers don't exactly know who all of them are though. One of our spies heard them talking while they were in the President's office then. They mentioned something about an Earth show, _Total Drama World Tour_, I believe it's called?" Carl responded.

"Is that so? Well then, _we'd better start working on giving them a show, huh?_" Radcliffe stood up and threw off his cloak.

He was revealed to be a tall, tan, lean man with long black hair with red streaks tied in a ponytail and narrow light green eyes. A long, thin scar went from under his left eye to his chin. He wore a black dress shirt and black pants.

"This battle is very important to me. If I win, I can secure myself immortality, but if I lose this time, I die! Stupid curse..." he paced up and down the room. He traced his scar.

"That stupid Fire Keeper gave me this wretched scar. Not even I can fully get rid of it. This time I'm going to get rid of them! And I know just how to do it..." He smiled a very evil smile.

* * *

Back in Deanna's kitchen, Vesta and the others were making their plans to get the next Keepers.

"I have a question." Aideen said. "The time freeze ability we all have now will only work on non-keepers, correct?"

"That's what I understood of it..." Vesta replied.

"Does it work on the cameras too?" Deanna asked.

"It freezes absolutely everything. People, cameras, clocks, watches, etc."

"Okay. Just clarifying..." Deanna responded.

"So when do we go?" Marissa asked.

"Now."

Vesta opened yet another portal.

"Boy, does this bring back memories. Remember what the Keepers before us were like?" Marissa asked.

"Ah, they were some fun women. And they taught us well." Aideen smiled.

"I hope we can teach or successors just as well as they taught us..." Vesta said.

"Knowing you, the new Energy keeper is certainly going to have a lot to live up to..." Marissa said.

"I know that I'm definitely taking no slack from whichever one of those Total Drama girls turns out to be my successor!" Deanna exclaimed, punching her palm.

"I think I almost feel sorry for her already!" Akari exclaimed laughing.

Deanna glared at her.

"Enough of that. Let's go!" Vesta stepped into the portal, gesturing for the others to follow her.

* * *

Credit for the characters Nasira & Hasim go to the lovely _**GwendolynD!**_


	3. What's Happening to Me?

**Disclaimer: **See Chapter 1.

* * *

**Unknown POV**

Over the past few days, ever since Total Drama World Tour started, I've been feeling strange. Almost as if something strange, something unusual, something bad, yet wonderful at the same time is about to happen. No, not with Chris' challenges, you always know those challenges are going to be weird.

I've been able to do the weirdest things too. I went to use the confessional once and when I touched the light switch, _all the power in the plane turned off!_ Lucky thing that Chef managed to get it fixed before we all plummeted to our deaths. Although something like that would've happened at sometime anyway with the condition that this accursed death trap that they dared to call the Total Drama Jumbo Jet was in...

Then there was the time that Sierra was being all creepy (as usual!). You never know what she's going to say or do next! Well, at least not usually. I blanked out for a moment and saw a vision of her. For some reason she decided to go bezerk because her old-pizza-box "laptop" went missing and she was going to fling a large suitcase across the room in her anger. Of course I got the hell out of there after that!

Minutes later I heard screaming and Cody yelling "Sierra, put DOWN that suitcase!"

"I want my laptop back, dammit!" Woah, she must be really pissed if she was yelling at him...

Then I heard a loud thump and when I dared to look, the same suitcase I saw in the vision was embedded where my head was minutes earlier...

Now that I'm stuck in Jamaica for a whole week (Chris blew the gas budget on a gold hot tub, and now we have no gas money, go figure!) I tried to forget that weird thing that happened. I don't need all this weird stuff happening to me when I already had to deal with _her_ being on my team as well. She has made my life a living hell from the start. I don't know how she got so mean and I really don't care.

Something else happened today that really freaked me out. One would think that being on a nice, relaxing Jamaican beach wouldn't freak me out, but something that happened today did...

I remember I was playing with an old coconut on my own. I had thrown it a bit too high and suddenly it came hurtling down. I braced myself for the inevitable impact, but it never came.

The coconut suddenly stopped in mid-air, as if it had hit some sort of invisible shield and then rolled off the side of it.

Needless to say that also unnerved me. What's going on here?

* * *

**Unknown POV 2**

Since this stupid show started, there's been nothing but grief for me. There's Ale-jerk-dro trying to manipulate all the girls and heck even some of the guys too, since he managed to get DJ out of the game...

Then there's his _pathetic_ attempts to manipulate me (which are _NOT_ working, might I add!).

AND then there's _her_. I don't know why I had to have the misfortune of being on a team with _that_ girl for three whole seasons!

I didn't think my time here could get any worse but _unfortunately_, it has.

One would think being stuck on a nice relaxing, Jamaican beach would be- well, relaxing(Chris and his egomaniacal tendencies seemed to think he needed a solid gold hot tub, so no more money for fuel!). Think again.

Strange things have been happening to me. Me, of all people! I think I'm *gulp* turning into some sort of freak! I've been able to do all these strange things lately.

I remember going into the cluster of trees near to the beach to get away from _him._ I admit, I was rather sulky at the time. I remember thinking about how much he had upset me. I remember the anger flowing through my body at his little schemes. Imagine thinking he could just waltz up in here and take away _MY_ _thunder_. _As if!_

That's when it happened. My hair started acting of its own accord. I kid you not. There was no wind around at all and suddenly my hair becomes undone and starts moving around. I swear, it scared the shit out of me! Luckily I managed to regain control of it. Let's just hope that that doesn't happen again while the others are around...

Then while I was _still_ in the forest, something _else_ happened.

I was leaning against a tree thinking about what just happened, and suddenly I wasn't leaning _against _the tree anymore! I was leaning _into_ the tree! What the hell!

Then I leaned out from behind the tree to see if anyone was around to see anything. I saw them all having fun in the water or doing all sorts of stuff on the sand. They were having fun, unlike me.

I had to pull, pull, and pull again for my hand to come out of the tree. Luckily it did...

I walked out of there, wanting to get away from that creepy forest, thinking it was only the forest that was doing these things to me. Oh how wrong I was...

* * *

**Unknown POV 3**

Oh, how glad I am to be out of Total Drama World Tour! It would have been nice to have won the million dollars, but at least I'm away from him. That manipulating, lying, conniving, hot, little... No, no _no!_ He is _NOT_ hot! _HE'S A HORRIBLE HORRIBLE PERSON!_ I hate him for what he did.

Normally, I'm not such a hateful person. I mean, I like people in general, I like nature, I like lots of things. But _him_? He's a whole other story...

Anyway, that's not the primary reason I'm glad I'm out now. I mean, it was before, but now, something even worse has been happening.

I remember going out to the pool at the hotel they'd arranged for us all to stay at near the Aftermath set. I thought I'd spend some time there relaxing before we had to get ready for the second aftermath (we need to raise money for the Total Drama World Tour to continue since Chris blew the gas money on a solid gold hot tub!). It was nice and quiet there, hardly any people were around, which was rather strange since it's the middle of summer and you'd think that the peanut gallery and all the other eliminated contestants would be hanging around there...

Oh how glad I turned out to be that they weren't there when I was though...

I cannonballed into the pool, not expecting anything to happen except a big splash.

Instead, the pool suddenly became solid and I skidded over to the other side of it. When I recovered, I looked down in horror to see that the pool had frozen over.

I leaned over to touch it, to make sure I wasn't dreaming; wasn't imagining things. It was real ice all right. Cold, frigid to the touch. As soon as I touched it, however, it melted. As if nothing had happened...

I still dared to go swimming in that pool afterwards and when I went down into it; I found that I didn't need to hold my breath as I normally would have. That part didn't amaze me as much as it should have. I guess I just didn't realize...

When I got out of the pool, I reached for my towel to dry off. As I did, I noticed that a trail of water had followed my hand movement. I did it again, and surely enough, the water moved along with my every hand movement. Coincidence? Maybe... But I still don't like it. I mean, what if it happens again when I'm with the others here? What would they say if the water around me behaved strangely like this? What would they think if they knew it was _me_ that was causing it? I sure hope it doesn't happen again...

* * *

**Unknown POV 4**

WOAH! That Aftermath we just had to raise money to refuel the Jumbo Jet (Chris decided he needed a gold hot tub for some _crazy _reason...) was... _AWESOME!_ The animals were all like: _ROAR!_ And Geoff, Bridgette, the mean blonde lady and the rest of us were like _AAAH!_ And I was like: YAY! It was sooo much fun! Awww, all those cute little animals! There were snapping turtles, goats; baby seals... T_hey looked so cute tearing up the set!_ My favourite was the alligator! I had to beat him off with a large metal bat (don't tell Bridgette I said that! She'd get crazy on me!) but that little dude sure put up a good fight! _Ha ha ha_... Ah, that was great.

And then as Brainzilla, my new super genius alter ego, I had to answer all these super hard questions, but I got them all right! Uh huh! Yes I did! I told them I was super smart, but they thought I was crazy! I sure showed them, huh?

And then I had to defuse a bomb and I smashed it with a hammer and it exploded and everyone was screaming again as we got scattered all over the set! What a thrill! I _so_ want to do that again.

But you know what was even crazier than that? The bomb had set my hand on fire _and I couldn't feel it at all!_ Isn't that strange? It didn't hurt a bit! I played with it a bit and I found that I could make it into little shapes! It was great!

But then I heard Bridgette coming to check up on me. I didn't want to freak her out even more than I usually seem to do, so I put it out. My hand wasn't even damaged! You could never tell that it was on fire in the first place! Most people call _me_ a psycho but even I knew that wasn't normal! Could you imagine what would happen if the RCMP found out about it? They'd probably hand me over to some aliens, maybe even the same ones I fought before- yes, I've fought aliens before- and they'd want to experiment on me! Can't have that happening, now can we? Oh, no we can't! Not one bit!

_THEY'LL NEVER GET ME ALIVE!_

* * *

**Unknown POV 5**

Oh my gosh! That Aftermath was like, so crazy! Becca let the animals out of their cages and they really messed up the place! It was horrible...

That was the second aftermath. Everyone said that it was to raise money to save Total Drama because Kyle spent the gas money for the jet on a gold hot tub. Oooh! I should totally ask Daddy if I can have one when I get home! It would be like, so great! _Eee!_

They tried to sell some of my stuff to help out, but for some reason, no one bought anything! Even when P.J. offered to make something yummy for whoever made a nice offer, no one was willing to do that! I can't believe it! P.J.'s food is really great! I don't know why no one would want to give up their cash for that...

Anyhow, something really creepy has been happening lately. I mean, really, really creepy. Not something like Heather being nice to me (even though, you gotta admit, that _would_ be pretty creepy...), but something even creepier.

Before this Aftermath started, I was in my room getting ready to go on in front of the camera. Nothing strange about that, right? That's what you think...

My ultra-rare, ultra hard-to-get, limited-edition tube of _StellaVita's_ Berry Cola lip gloss had rolled under a table nearby. Then I heard Bethany and George calling me to come out on stage with them, but I wasn't ready! I didn't want to go down on the floor and get it! My outfit would get dirty! I can't have dirty clothes on camera! But then I can't go out on camera without being fully made up! This was like, _such a moral crisis_!

But then something I never expected to happen, happened. When I was standing there, _totally_ freaking out, really wishing I didn't have to go under there, the lip gloss tube suddenly floated out from under the table and right into my hand! I couldn't believe it! Did _I _make that happen? I'd have to actually think about that later. The camera awaited my gorgeousness!

Anyway, something else weird happened during the show!

George had gathered me and the others up in a large net above a shark tank! Bethany was right! George _is _getting cruel!

Guess what he did that for. Guess!

He had like, super-smart Isa clamped to that spinny-wheel thingy! And she was supposed to answer these freakishly hard questions! And if she didn't get them right, then, *gulp* me, the almond gallery _and_ Isa would be shark bait!

Turns out she got them all right! Yay for that, but George had something worse in mind.

You see, the wheel broke off, she rolled all the way backstage and she crashed into something back there and it knocked her back to her old self! Uh-oh...

George wanted her to diffuse a bomb, and Isa, being the psycho she is, smashed it with a hammer instead of diff-, diff-, cutting the wire she was supposed to!

It exploded, sending us all over the place. But me, I felt like I was _flying_. In fact, I _was _flying! I wasn't thrown violently across the room like others were!

I caught myself in it and then I slammed into something. I don't remember what it was though. Just that it hurt so much...

What's going on with me?


	4. The First Meeting

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Vesta and the others stood hidden behind some boulders on the Jamaican beach, watching those on the beach.

"What's the plan?" Akari whispered.

"Hold on." Vesta had her eyes on two girls on the beach in particular.

They seemed to be arguing about something. One of them stormed away into the jet and the other flopped into a beach chair, laughing to herself.

Vesta held out the Star in their direction. It glowed green for a moment, then silver.

"Looks like only the Earth and Energy keepers are here..." Aideen observed.

"Then _where_ are the other three?" Deanna asked, impatient.

"Patience, Deanna. We'll find them." Marissa said, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"By the looks of it, those two don't seem to get along very well. How are they going to do the job if they can't even be civil to each other?" Akari asked.

"As I remember it, you and Deanna never got along at first, _right_?" Vesta replied.

The former Air Keeper smiled in response.

"Are we ready to do this?" Aideen asked the others.

"As ready as we'll ever be." Vesta took a deep breath.

"Time to perform the Time Freeze spell..."

* * *

Back on the beach, Gwen was reading a book in her beach chair, while Heather lay stretched out on a towel, trying to get a tan.

"Hello there, _chica_." Heather looked up to glare at the speaker.

"What do _you_ want, jerk?" Heather snapped.

"I merely wanted to talk to you, Heather. Nothing more." Alejandro held up his hands in surrender and walked away. Heather couldn't help but stare at him as he walked away. As much as she'd hate to admit it, she _was_ attracted to him; his smile, his muscles, his way of playing the game...

"Stop staring, Heather! Get a grip!" she scolded herself mentally. "You can't let _a guy_ distract you from the game! You are here to _win _this thing!"

She got up, folded her towel and began to go towards the plane when she noticed something odd.

Alejandro had frozen in place, in mid step. When she looked around, she saw that _everyone _was frozen in the middle of what they were doing.

Chris and Chef were laughing about something, while Courtney stood in front of them, an angry expression on her face. Owen held a coconut to his head while a stream of its water froze just above his mouth. Tyler and Cody were playing volleyball while Sierra watched, cheering the latter on.

It was then that Heather noticed that only one person who wasn't frozen besides herself.

"GWEN WHAT DID YOU DO?"

Gwen looked up from her book to notice Heather storming towards her. She took a moment to look around and then replied.

"I didn't do a thing! You must be cause of all the strange things happening to me!"

"Happening to you? What about me?"

"_You?_ What happened to the time that the plane's power went off? You did something to that light switch!"

"_Me? _How could I have done that!_ I was in First Class! _What about you? You must've done something to that tree!"

"What tree? Was that your imagination?"

"No, no it was not."

The old Keepers stepped out from behind the rocks.

To Gwen and Heather, these people radiated pure power and on the inside, they felt a little intimidated by them. Yet, they felt as if they had some sort of connection...

"Those things that you are able to do; those were nor pranks or accidents." Vesta explained

"_Who are you?"_ Heather asked.

"How do you know about 'those things'?" Gwen added.

"Simple, we used to do those things as well." Aideen answered.

"Oh yeah? _Show us._" Heather folded her arms.

Deanna held her arm behind her and a coconut tree behind them extended towards them. She flicked her hand and the tree flung back to its original position, not before a few coconuts fell off it.

Vesta put up a visible silver shield and the coconuts fell to the ground without harming them.

"Wow." Gwen mumbled in amazement.

"_Who are you people anyway, and why should we trust you!"_ Heather asked sharply.

"_Watch your tone!"_ Deanna replied, raising an eyebrow.

Heather raised an eyebrow right back at her.

"She has a right to know, Deanna! We will explain everything when we find three more of you. _Now, are there any females that have left this show recently?_" Vesta answered urgently.

"Yeah. Izzy left the most recently..." Gwen trailed off as the Star glowed red.

Aideen shuddered.

"What is that?" Heather asked puzzled.

"It is called the Silver Star. It helped us find you and apparently this Izzy is one of the others we are looking for..." Marissa answered.

"Why are you looking for _us_?" Gwen asked.

"That will be explained when we find all five of you." Vesta replied.

"Now, who are the others that have left?" Aideen asked.

"Lindsay..." the Star glowed white. Akari face-palmed and the others looked at her curiously.

"Bridgette..." the Star glowed light blue. Marissa raised an eyebrow.

"We know who you all are then!" Vesta exclaimed eagerly.

"Just be glad we found you before Radcliffe did..." Deanna muttered.

"Who's Radcliffe?" the two girls asked.

"One of the main reasons we have these powers." Akari answered.

"And he's someone you wouldn't like to meet alone..." Aideen shuddered.

"And now we have you, we must go to the others and we shall be able explain everything once you all are together. It's better than having to repeat the whole long story..." Marissa said.

"Where would they be?" Akari asked.

"Probably the Aftermath studio or Playa De Losers 2 otherwise known as the townhouse that was rented for us in Total Drama Action..." Heather answered. "That's where we all stay until the show is over when we're eliminated..."

"Then that is our next destination. Stand back please." Vesta said calmly.

Gwen and Heather slowly backed away.

Vesta once again made a portal and gestured for them to enter.

"After you, future Keepers!"

"_Future what?_" Heather exclaimed.

"Just get in the portal Heather, _dammit_!" Gwen yelled.

"_How do you know we can trust these people_?" Heather asked.

"I just know, alright!" Gwen shouted, pushing her through.

Akari and Deanna chuckled, watching this in amusement as they followed. "Energy Instinct activated, huh?" Aideen whispered to them. They all smiled knowingly.

* * *

Back at PDL2, Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay were all freaking out at seeing everything all around them frozen in mid-motion.

Bridgette had been making out with Geoff when suddenly he froze on top of her.

"Mmph! Geoff! Geoff!" she mumbled.

He fell off her, as still as a statue in the same position he was before.

"GEOFF!" Bridgette jumped up and started shaking him.

When it didn't work Bridgette did something very out of character for her.

She swore.

Long and loudly.

* * *

Izzy meanwhile was watching a movie with Katie, Sadie, Eva and DJ when she noticed that the movie had suddenly stopped. No one had touched the remote (because she hid it!); no one had gone near the T.V. so the only cause was...

"The ALIENS ARE COMING BACK FOR ME!" she shrieked, running around the room, grabbing various implements she could use as weapons such as legs off a table, a bucket for a helmet, a scimitar (now _where_ did she _possibly _find that?), etc.

It was then she noticed that it was not only the television that was frozen, but also her friends.

"Katie?" she shook her. No results.

"_Sadie?_" Same result.

"DJ?" she shook him harder. Still nothing.

She then proceeded carefully over to Eva.

"EVA? EVA? EVVAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" she shook her so violently that her still body fell off the couch.

"_Oh no!_ IRON WOMAN HAS FALLEN! WE'RE ALL DOOMED!" Izzy shrieked as she ran out of the room.

* * *

Lindsay, in the meantime was getting a manicure in the hotel salon with Beth and Leshawna. She was getting her nails painted in Royal Purple, Beth had chosen Princess Pink and Leshawna had picked Lushalicious Lemon. She and the others were having a conversation about the contest so far.

"I'm so rooting for Tyler to win! I mean, he'd totally deserve it!" she had squealed.

"Girl, that's all fine and dandy for you, but all I care is that neither Heather nor Alejandro wins that thing!" Leshawna said. "They're both horrible!"

"That's so true. Neither of them deserves to have that million bucks!" Beth exclaimed.

Their manicures had now been finished and Lindsay got up and began to walk away, expecting Beth and Leshawna to follow.

However, she saw them both frozen in position as they got up from the manicuring stations, as well as the nail technicians.

Being as, well-_slow _as she was, you'd have expected her not to notice anything out of the ordinary here, but _even she_ knew something was wrong with this situation.

"_Betty_?" she went up to Beth and waved her newly-manicured hand in front of her face in an effort to get her attention. It didn't work.

"_Lefonda_? ?" she yelled, shaking Leshawna. Nothing happened.

She did the same to the nail technicians and got no response from them either.

"Oh my gosh! We're being turned into statues! I don't want to be a statue! Statues are ugly!" she screamed in fright and ran from the room in a panic.

* * *

After all that had occurred, Bridgette had ran to the pool to see if there was anyone else frozen there. Everyone on the pool deck was frozen in the middle of whatever they were doing.

"_No, no, no, no, NO_!" she yelled in frustration, tearing at her hair. "_What's happening_!" she shrieked.

"_Izzy wants to know the same thing_!" Izzy shrieked into the surfer girl's ear, suddenly appearing behind her.

"Hey! _Izzy, what was that for!_" Bridgette yelled, rubbing her ear in pain.

"Never mind that! We must search for survivors! Leave no man or woman behind, for this war against aliens shall be an epic one, and we shall need as many soldiers as possible!" Izzy yelled, scampering around the pool deck checking each and every person there, getting no reactions from them.

"_Survivors?_ What do you mean _survivors?_ No one has died... right?" Bridgette asked nervously.

"Not that Izzy knows..."

"That's good at least..." Bridgette sank into a nearby chair.

"What do we do now?" a voice called from the doorway. Izzy and Bridgette looked up to see Lindsay walking towards them, looking worried.

"Another survivor!" Izzy yelled, getting up to glomp Lindsay in happiness.

"Lindsay, what happened with you?" Bridgette asked, urgently.

"I was getting manicures with Betty and Lefonda in the salon, when suddenly they froze like statues!" Lindsay said, shaking. "I tried and tried to snap them out of it, but it wouldn't work!" Lindsay wailed.

Bridgette rested a comforting hand on Lindsay's shoulder. "Don't worry, Lindsay, we'll figure out what's behind this!"

"Thanks Bethany!" Lindsay sniffled.

"It's Bridgette." Bridgette corrected her.

"Enough with the small talk! We must solve- _the case of the frozen statue people!_" Izzy exclaimed, suddenly wearing a Sherlock-like hat and carrying a magnifying glass.

* * *

While all of that was going on, Gwen, Heather and the former Keepers had appeared in the lobby in a flash of silver light.

"This is the 'Playa De Losers 2' of which you spoke, correct?" Vesta asked, turning to Heather.

Heather just stood there stunned at the fact that just minutes ago she was standing on a Jamaican beach, but was now standing in the lobby of a _Canadian_ hotel.

She blinked twice. "Oh, uh, _yeah. _It is." She stammered.

"You have GOT to teach me how to do that!" Gwen pleaded with Vesta.

She and the other Old Keepers laughed.

"Don't worry. It's one of your powers! You will learn all about it in time. But for now we must find the other..." Vesta trailed off as Izzy came running down the stairs shrieking, Bridgette and Lindsay close behind.

Izzy screeched to a halt and tumbled down the rest of the staircase as soon as she caught sight of Gwen, Heather and the Old Keepers.

Bridgette saw this too late and tripped over Izzy.

Lindsay saw Bridgette trip too late and fell over on top of Bridgette and Izzy, who all eventually fell to the bottom of the staircase screaming.

"Oww... _Izzy what was that_... Oh, wow..." Bridgette trailed off as she looked up to see the new arrivals, who were all looking at them incredulously. Gwen raised an eyebrow.

"Now I see what they mean by you being a klutz!" Gwen chuckled. Izzy got up, brushed herself off and helped up the two blondes.

"That wasn't my fault! It was Izzy's!" Bridgette complained, rubbing her arm. She stopped in the middle of what she was doing as soon as she realized who she was she was talking to and gaped at her.

"_Gw-Gw-Gwen?_" she stammered. "_How-how-d-d-did_ you get here? And Heather?" Bridgette continued.

Lindsay looked up and her jaw fell open. "Who are those people behind you, Greta? And how'd you get there? Aren't you supposed to be stuck in Jamaica?" Lindsay asked, confused.

"Oh sure. Ignore me! Heather huffed, turning her back to them. "Same as usual!"

Izzy waved her off. "Who are you?" Izzy asked, surprisingly calm, eyeing the people behind her suspiciously.

"Us? We are the Keepers of the Elements. Or at least soon to be former Keepers anyway." Vesta answered.

"Keepers of the Elements?" Bridgette asked, skeptical.

"Yes. We all have powers over the elements, which were granted to us to help maintain the balance of good and evil in all realms."Akari answered.

"That balance is going to tip soon, and we must be ready to combat it." Vesta added.

"Your powers have been activated, meaning that this can occur at any time. This is why we come to you now." Marissa stepped forward, adding her piece to the conversation.

"Haven't you been able to do, well, _strange things_ lately?" Aideen asked.

"Wait, wait, _wait._ _We_ have powers over the elements?" Izzy laughed. "And I thought _I_ was crazy!"

"You _ARE_ crazy, Izzy!" Heather snapped.

"How is that even possible?" Bridgette asked.

"I swore I heard you say something about realms. But I thought... _Huh?_" Lindsay was even more confused.

"What she means was that how can there be more than one realm of existence? Is it really true? Is it even possible?" Gwen interpreted.

"You want proof? We'll give you proof!" Akari noticed Izzy's broken magnifying glass on the floor. She held out her hand toward it and it floated to her.

Lindsay stood there, mystified.

"I can do that!" she exclaimed. She pointed towards a pen on the check-in desk that the clerk had been using before she herself had been frozen; it floated towards her and landed perfectly in her hand.

"See?" Deanna asked proudly.

"Which one of you can control water?" Bridgette asked.

"I can." Marissa stepped forward. She pointed her hand toward a nearby bucket of water. The water it contained soon started to swirl around in the air.

Bridgette just stared, before she pointed a finger to it and it froze in mid-air. She clenched her hand and the water unfroze and fell back into place. Marissa nodded approvingly.

"So this must mean it's my turn!" Aideen exclaimed. She stepped forward and made a ball of fire, tossing it between her hands as if it were an ordinary ball.

"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! _MY TURN! MY TURN!_" Izzy shrieked, scooping the fire out of Aideen's hands and twirling it around into different shapes. As she was doing it slipped out of her hands and set the floor on fire.

"_Izzy!_" Gwen said, exasperatedly. "Must you set everything on fire?" she groaned as Marissa stepped forward to put it out.

"Only if it belongs to the RCMP..." Heather muttered under her breath.

"_RCMP! WHERE!_" Izzy shrieked.

"What does the RCMP have to do with anything?" Deanna asked.

"Oh. Isa is number eight on their most wanted list!" Lindsay exclaimed.

"Oh no. _She's wanted!_" Aideen shrieked.

Vesta face-palmed while Deanna shook her head.

"What did she do that was so bad?" Marissa asked out of curiosity.

"Oh. I only went A.W.O.L. following an explosive accident while serving in the reserves..." Izzy said, nonchalantly.

"Oh yeah. Give the _psycho hose beast _the element of fire. Great idea! _NOT..._" Heather declared. "If she's supposed to save the world with that, we're all going to be doomed!" she moaned.

"So if they all have powers of the elements, that doesn't quite explain what I am..." Gwen said confused.

"Water, fire, earth and air aren't the only elements that exist, you know. There is also a fifth; that of energy. This is the element that we both share." Vesta explained to the Goth.

"It is also the most powerful of the five; for without energy, how can the other elements exist?" Vesta continued.

"Wait, wait, _wait._ You're saying that not only do I have power over an element, but that I got the most powerful one?" Gwen said, disbelieving.

"I'm still confused," Lindsay interrupted them. "You still haven't told us who you are!" Lindsay declared.

"You know, Lindsay's right! Who are you really?" Bridgette asked.

"She's right you know." Marissa said.

"Oh right! How rude of us!" Vesta apologized. "I am Vesta, the former Keeper of Energy."

"Marissa, former Keeper of Water." Marissa said.

"I am Aideen, former Keeper of Fire." Aideen said.

"My name is Deanna, and I was the Keeper of Earth." Deanna declared.

"I'm Akari, the past Keeper of Air." Akari finished.

"So, now that we know your names, can we please get a proper explanation of this whole Keeper thing? I mean, I still don't quite understand this thing. I mean, were there Keepers before you? Who were they? How did Keepers come into being?" Bridgette asked.

"Bridgette's right. Why us?" Izzy asked.

"I agree with Isa." Lindsay declared.

"And for once, I agree with them all!" Heather exclaimed.

"Is there a place where we can talk? For the story of Keepers is a long and interesting one." Vesta asked.

"Yeah, sure. There's the lounge..." Bridgette trailed off.

"I left DJ, Katie, Sadie and Eva in there though..." Izzy said.

"It does not matter; they will not be able to hear us. We shall go there!" Marissa declared.

"Agreed. Now hold on for a sec while I go get Nasira and Hasim..." Vesta trailed off as a familiar flash of purple appeared in the lobby.

"I hate it when they do that!" Aideen shrieked.

"Get used to it, because we're going to be doing it a lot more that you've found them..." Nasira said, suddenly appearing behind her husband.

"She scares me!" Lindsay whispered to Izzy, who nodded fervently. Bridgette, Gwen and Heather also looked intimidated.

"So these are the new Keepers, huh?" Hasim smiled.

"Okay, I'm not scared of him!" Lindsay declared.

"I'm Hasim, and this is my lovely wife, Nasira." Hasim introduced them.

"Strange how such a cheerful-looking man like Hasim ever fell in love with such a scary-looking woman..." Heather whispered to Gwen, who for once agreed with the queen bee, nodding.

"Nasira here is the Mistress of Time." Deanna explained. "Both she and her husband are Immortals; they have seen many things!" Aideen said.

"_Including_ having met all of the past Keepers, as you might have guessed." Marissa added.

"So they will help us tell you everything about how you got your powers..."

"I have a question." Heather said, raising her hand.

"Can't it wait?" Deanna asked, annoyed.

"No, not really, Deanna." Heather said.

"Your question is important, Heather, I agree, but we will answer that later. Now let's go to this 'lounge' that you spoke of!" Nasira said.

Bridgette led the way and everyone else followed.

"How did she know what I wanted to ask?" Heather whispered to Gwen, both at the back of the group.

Gwen thought for a moment. "She saw it. I'm guessing since she's the Mistress of Time, she can see the past, present and future, including what you were going to ask..."

Heather blinked. "Okay... This whole thing is so weird..."

"_You said it, sister!_" Izzy shrieked from behind them, startling the two.

"_IZZY!_" Gwen and Heather yelled, chasing her towards the lounge, as she ran off screaming and cackling madly.


	5. A History of Keepers and Magic Part 1

So, I'm back again! Phew! A lot has been going on lately! For this story, a good amount of research was put in for this chapter, in my actual life school restarting, major 'educational' trip to Paris next month that I'm all excited for, not to mention that this is my last year of school before I go to university!

**Disclaimer:** See first chapter.

* * *

"Ah. So where do we begin?" Vesta paced up and down in front of the large couch where Nasira, Hasim and the Old Keepers sat (the newer ones sat cross-legged on the floor while Eva, DJ Katie and Sadie were in the smaller couch across the room).

"Start with how you found out that you were the Keepers and talk about the Keepers before yourselves." Nasira advised.

"Very well then." She turned towards the newer Keepers.

"Many years ago, when we were 16, just like you are now, similar things started happening to us. It's amazing how we found each other too, seeing as some of us weren't even from the same country as the others!" Vesta said, grinning at Akari, Aideen and Marissa.

"How did you find each other then?" Lindsay asked.

"Freakishly odd coincidences!" Akari exclaimed, laughing as she recalled how they met.

"Or, as I should correct you Akari, _fate_." Nasira said.

"Just like how all the new keepers somehow managed to end up together in a group, on a reality TV show no less!" Bridgette chucked.

"This _has_ to be fate!" Gwen exclaimed. "Something as major as all five of us having powers over the elements and we get stuck together like this!"

"Rather convenient, is it not?" Hasim smiled.

"That it is!" Izzy laughed.

"Anyway..." Vesta continued, interrupted them.

"Deanna and I were childhood friends." Vesta said, smiling at Deanna, who let out a rare smile.

"So it came as no surprise that she'd be the first Keeper I'd find!"

"What a coincidence! Gwen is the new Energy Keeper and I'm the new Earth Keeper and she found me first!" Heather observed.

"Except you and I were never friends." Gwen pointed out.

"Nor will we ever be." Heather shot back.

Gwen glared at Heather and Heather glared right back.

"Enough of that! Let Vesta continue the story!" Deanna yelled. Heather and Gwen instantly shrank back.

"Temper, temper, Deanna! Thank goodness you didn't get the Fire Element!" Vesta grinned.

"Deanna and I were in a park together, doing our homework in the fresh air for a change, when like for you girls, time froze. You can imagine like you girls, we, understandably freaked out."

"Vesta was freaking out about not being to hand in her homework to the teacher, of all things! She was such a Mary-Sue back then!" Deanna chuckled as Vesta glared at her and the others joined in the laughter. Even Nasira managed a smile. Akari however, was doubled over with laughter.

"Not funny." Vesta muttered. "So, time had frozen and _we both _were panicking. Then all of a sudden, the previous Keepers appeared in front of us; Alice, Elizabeth and Emily (twins, by the way!), Saveeta and Janessa. Alice was my predecessor, while Elizabeth was Marissa's, Emily was Aideen's, Saveeta was Deanna's and Janessa was Akari's."

"What did they look like, Vanna?" Lindsay asked, innocently. Vesta raised an eyebrow at Lindsay saying her name incorrectly. Apparently she decided not to correct her as she continued the story.

"Alice had grey hair pulled back into a ponytail and sharp green eyes. I understand when she was younger, her hair was red, a deeper shade than Izzy's even!" Vesta said.

"I remember Elizabeth. Curly grey ringlets and those baby blue eyes." Marissa said. "Not unlike Lindsay's!" she added.

"Yeah! I remember! And her sister, my predecessor, Emily told they were blondes when they were younger!" Aideen said.

"Saveeta was Indian, with her hair back in a single braid." Deanna said.

"As for Janessa, her hair was long and wavy. Light brown in her younger days as I understood it." Akari said.

"Physical appearances aren't that important."Nasira interrupted. "Get to the point of the story please."

"Right." Vesta nodded.

"I found Marissa next. Deanna and I were just sitting in a local shop and the Star acted up when she entered the store! After we got to know her better, we learnt that she had just moved here with her family from Jamaica!" Vesta smiled at Marissa who smiled back.

"Next was Akari. Her dad was a Japanese diplomat who'd just moved his family to the country. We met at school the week after Marissa was found."

"As you can guess, Aideen was the last Keeper to be found. She was a rather tricky one." Aideen chuckled nervously.

"They found me after I accidentally set my mom's house on fire..." Aideen said sheepishly. "They just so happened to be walking past my house when I blew out the window!"

"_That sounds awesome!_" Izzy said. Everyone looked at her strangely, even Nasira.

"Fire everywhere around you! Hehe..." Izzy giggled.

"Good thing I had at least learnt how to operate the shield then!" Vesta said. Aideen smiled sheepishly.

"It's also a good thing that the fire station was around the corner, or else your house would've been toast!" Marissa added.

"Coincidentally I _was_ making toast when it happened!" Aideen exclaimed. "Mum wasn't too pleased with that. Luckily she never knew the REAL cause! I doubt she'd have taken too kindly to it. She'd been under a lot of stress lately, having moved my family all the way over from Scotland!"

"Anyway, after we found each other, Alice and the others told us their story, like we are doing for you now. Nasira and Hasim joined them as well. We were told of the full extent of our power and why we had them. To defeat Radcliffe and others like him."

Aideen twitched. Heather noticed this and looked at her curiously. Aideen just looked back at her.

"_I wonder why she reacted like that..._" Heather thought.

"So who's this Radcliffe guy?" Izzy asked excitedly.

"Radcliffe is a very, _very_ evil wizard." Aideen muttered.

The New Keepers looked at her strangely.

"Why'd Aida react like that when none of the rest of you did?" Lindsay asked, curious.

"Let's just say that Aideen was your predecessor's _dividing_ target..." Nasira explained.

The New Keepers let out various expression of confusion.

"With every generation of Keepers, he _always_ tries something like it. He tries to break up the trust of the group by messing with the mind of one of the group; one who he feels may be the weakest link. He has always done it; even with the very first group of Keepers: Ichigo, Madeline, Amora, Marjani and Anacaona when he found out about them. Ana, the Keeper of Air was his victim then..." Hasim explained seriously.

"Gwen, who do you think may be the weakest link here might be?" Marissa asked, turning to the new Energy Keeper.

Gwen, Izzy, Heather and Bridgette immediately turned to Lindsay, who was now fiddling with a ball of air now that the conversation had paused. She looked back at Gwen and the others looking confused as to why they were all suddenly staring at her. "What?" she asked.

Gwen simply looked back at her, face-palmed and looked back at Marissa.

"Lindsay. Definitely Lindsay." She said simply, thumbing the dumb blonde.

Marissa chuckled.

"Be warned; it isn't always who you expect it to be. His choices have been very surprising with some generations. For example, with Vesta's generation, I honestly thought it would have been Deanna, because of her... _temper problems_." Nasira looked over to said Keeper, who shrugged.

"Tell us more about this _nutjob_, Radcliffe!" Izzy insisted.

"We'll take over from here, Vesta." Nasira said, standing up. Hasim followed her.

"After all, we've know him for centuries." Hasim added.

"_Unfortunately._" Nasira said.

"_Unfortunately indeed..._"

"It all started when..." Hasim started the tale.

* * *

_**Saurian, Alma: 12**__**h**__** Century**_

The buildings on the planet looked like those of Earth today. No floating energy disks acting as elevators, no impossibly tall buildings; nothing like that at all. There were ordinary cars that didn't float off the ground, ordinary-looking hair and clothing by modern Earth standards.

Two young men walked along the ancient streets. One was stout and of average height and had his brown hair in a pageboy cut and honey brown eyes, obviously supposed to be a younger version of Hasim.

The other, a tall, lean man with shaggy black hair just below his ears walked beside him.

_Radcliffe. _

"So, how did you take the news, Hasim? We're two of the three Immortals that this planet has produced! Isn't that exciting? We get to see centuries and centuries of things others of our generation will never get to see!" Radcliffe exclaimed.

"I suppose it is. It's going to be quite the responsibility though!" Hasim exclaimed.

"I heard that the Council has found five girls to help us defend the universe. The universe!" Radcliffe exclaimed.

"Their power is incredible indeed. They are more powerful than us, possibly! Manipulating the elements is truly an amazing power!" Hasim replied.

"Yes, yes it is..." Radcliffe mumbled to himself.

"And they are all from Earth, no less! So much power, being born on one planet!" Hasim said.

"So, what do they plan to do with them?" Radcliffe asked curiously.

"I've been told that Nasira, our third Immortal, was sent to Earth with a special device for finding them. The Silver Star, I believe it's called! The council made it as a special gift to whoever turns out to have the strongest element." Hasim mumbled.

"Is that so?" Radcliffe said under his breath. "_Hmm..._"

Shortly after this, they reached the President of that time's headquarters. The building looked almost the same as it did now; except it did not have the glass dome roof with the flag on top or the laser gates greeting them at the entrance. Instead, regular wrought iron gates sealed off the entrance.

As they made their way to the office of the then President, a younger Nasira-with a slanted bob, appeared in her signature flash of purple light in front of them.

"Hello Nasira!" Hasim smiled. Radcliffe merely nodded to acknowledge her presence.

"Good news! I have found the five young ladies who can control the elements and they are here right now, in the President's office. Had quite the time persuading Earth's Magic Council to let them come here to meet us though..." Nasira spoke as she walked alongside the two men briskly.

Soon enough they had entered the President's office. The President herself got up to open it for the three newest arrivals. She was a tall, lean woman with dark skin and black hair pulled up into a tight bun, who also wore rectangular, black-framed glasses.

"Welcome, welcome, you three! So glad to finally have you here! Nasira, they're doing fine. I conjured up some refreshments for us all, since I can tell this is going to be one long and interesting meeting..." she waved them in.

As soon as he entered the room, before he even saw them, Radcliffe could sense the power pulsating in the room. "_Such incredible power! I must have it for my own_!" He thought. "_But how do I do it_?"

"So, President Reiner, how are they doing?" he asked.

"Ask them yourselves! They're right over there!" she said, pointing to a corner.

In that corner, all seated in a large, comfortable-looking sofa were five uncomfortable-looking girls. The first had smooth, pale skin and thick, straight jet black hair and chocolate brown Asian-looking eyes. The second had wild, dirty-blonde hair and shiny, mischievous-looking blue eyes. The third, a girl with curly dark-brown hair and green eyes was talking with the second animatedly. The fourth girl was black, with her hair in braids and the last girl was Arawak, with straight, shiny black hair, brown, almost black, sad-looking eyes and was looking around nervously.

"Ladies, I believe introductions are necessary," President Reiner started. "I am President Joanne Reiner, President of this planet that we chose to bring you to. You already know Nasira, so I'll ask Hasim and Radcliffe to introduce themselves..." she trailed off as the aforementioned people did so.

"Your turn ladies." Nasira said.

The Asian-looking one who introduced herself as Ichigo, the Energy Keeper, spoke with what would now be considered a rather heavy stereotypical Japanese-English accent. "The Cipangonian **(1)** Magic Council back on Earth was rather reluctant to let me come here. Why couldn't we be trained there?" she asked.

"In time, Ichigo, in time..." Nasira assured her.

The second girl introduced herself as Madeline, the Gaulian **(2)** Water Keeper. "This is all so exciting!" she exclaimed. "I was supposed to go to L'Ecole pour Les Filles Magiques **(3) **but I actually get to go to another planet instead!" she grinned.

The third girl, who was from Aragon, **(4) **introduced herself as Amora, the Fire Keeper. "I like this planet thus far, I really do!"

The fourth girl, who spoke with an African accent, introduced herself as Marjani, the Earth Keeper. "I am from Benin. A pretty great place to live!" she grinned.

"My-my-n-name i-i-is A-A-Anacaona..." she stammered. "You c-can-just call me Ana. And as you can guess, since I'm the only one left, I'm the 'Air Keeper'"

* * *

The room was deathly silent as Hasim paused to let this all sink in.

"Woah, that couldn't be the end!" Izzy broke it, exclaiming.

"Why does poor Ana stammer like that?" Bridgette asked.

"I am more interested in their nationalities. Cipangonian, Aragon, Benin, Gaul? Seriously? That was the 12th Century! What are those countries called now? I don't know any countries named that!" Gwen asked.

"But I thought those countries didn't know that the others existed back then!" Lindsay exclaimed.

"Also," Heather added. "Language barriers? How did you understand them? In fact, how did they understand each other?" she wondered.

"Omnilingualism, my dear successor! The inborn ability to speak any existing language, from Korean to Klingon! Not that anyone actually wants to speak Klingon..." Deanna grumbled the last part.

"Really? So I, never having studied Chinese, could go to China and automatically understand the words on signs there and speak it fluently?" Lindsay asked curiously.

"Yes. Each generation of Keepers has been granted that ability, among others in addition to their Elemental abilities." Vesta explained. "For example, you wouldn't say that your hair suddenly acting like it did on that beach is part of the Earth element, would you Heather?" Vesta said, as Heather's hand suddenly flew to her hair to make sure it wasn't doing just that.

The others looked at her puzzled.

"What is it called, when my hair does that?" Heather asked, still fiddling with her hair.

"That, my dear," Deanna started. "Is called Prehensile Hair which is just a fancy term the Universal Magic Council uses for it, by the way... I did not have that ability myself, but I do know that it is the ability to manipulate your hair any way you feel like. It is super durable; you can grow it to any length at will and command it to do anything you want!" Deanna exclaimed.

"Really? I can grow my hair back?" Heather was now excited.

"What about me?" Gwen asked. "I can see the future sometimes! What does that have to do with anything?"

"Prerecognition! Future seeing! Just what you call it, Gwen! I had that ability as well." Vesta smiled.

"I guess being able to breathe underwater is expected when you have Water-based powers, huh?" Bridgette asked.

"Yes, Bridgette, it is." Marissa nodded.

"What about me? I can make things float into my hand; make things come to me without touching them! And if I'm not mistaken, I'm sure I flew through the air and wasn't thrown through the air like the others when _Isa_..." Lindsay glared at 'Isa'. "...blew up the aftermath set!"

"_IT'S IZZY!_" Izzy roared, making Lindsay step back.

"Telekinesis is the first if I'm not mistaken. As for the second, the Air Keeper is the only Keeper who can fly, even when _NOT_ transformed!" Akari said.

"_Transformed!_" The New Keepers exclaimed.

"Technically, Keepers are considered extremely powerful fairies. Not only do you have your Elemental powers, but you also have some magic powers, along with your special abilities, unlike ordinary fairies who can only cast simple magic spells!" Hasim exclaimed.

"_Including_ getting fabulous new wings and outfits!" Aideen grinned.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Lindsay exclaimed.

"So much power!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"_Fairy wings..._" Gwen groaned.

"We don't have to wear any silly, frilly outfits, do we?" Heather exclaimed.

"I hardly think the outfits matter here, really..." Deanna replied coldly. Heather flinched.

"...But your outfits usually correspond with a combination of your element colour and personality..." she continued.

"I don't know about anyone else, but I noticed that Hasim never continued the story after he stopped!" Izzy exclaimed. "_I wanna hear more!_" she shrieked.

"Hey, Izzy's right! You never did finish that story Hasim!" Bridgette agreed.

"You are right, I apologize ladies." Hasim grinned. "Now where was I?" he asked as everyone settled back in.

"Anacaona!" The New Keepers exclaimed.

"Oh right..."

* * *

Back in President Reiner's office, Ana was just introducing herself.

"I'm from the Orinoco region."**(5) **She said quietly.

"What's the matter Ana? Why so shy?" Marjani asked.

"Never you mind." Ana suddenly snapped.

"Okay, okay. Sheesh!" Marjani held up her hands as if in surrender.

Hasim raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"She's extremely timid and doesn't have that much self-confidence. We're going to have to change that!" Nasira whispered to him. He nodded.

* * *

Weeks later, the five Keepers were practicing with their elements in the Mora region with Nasira when suddenly Hasim appeared with the grimmest expression on his face that one could imagine.

The girls immediately stopped what they were doing to look at him.

Ichigo was making a shield while Madeline was conjuring up ice bullets firing at her. Amora was wielding a sword made of pure fire, Marjani was standing on a boulder she had made to float in mid-air and Ana was slicing through a nearby tree with air swirling around her arms.

Hasim? Looking so serious? Something had to be majorly wrong...

"Hasim? Dear? What is wrong? Where is Radcliffe?" she asked.

"Nasira, I regret to say that Radcliffe has crossed over to the dark side. He is now a traitor to us." Hasim announced.

Nasira's face hardened while the Keepers let out varying expressions of shock.

"I can't believe it! Radcliffe-bad!" Ichigo stood in shock as she said this.

"It can't be..." Ana said quietly.

"_Where is the bastard?_" Madeline and Marjani roared together.

"He apparently feels that he deserves more power than he already has and has secretly been raising armies using the evil side of his powers. He also apparently seems to think that you girls are going to be a major obstacle to him..." he continued.

"_Which we will!_" they all roared.

"...so he's going to try and attack you, to make sure no one stands in his way." Nasira finished for him.

"He's already sent out zombie armies to terrorize several other planets! So far, Zenith has been hardest hit. He's already taken out their central power core so you know that it cannot survive long after that, since it's a technology based planet! Its inhabitants, including President Hanoi and his family have already had to flee! And as I understand it, his oldest daughter Abigail has been critically injured by Radcliffe himself as she tried to rescue her younger siblings at their school!" Hasim exclaimed. "Even _their_ Immortal, Samuel has fled! We cannot find him to contact him! Planet Nadir is also in trouble! King Mowan and Queen Sollela are having difficulties of their own fending off Radcliffe's armies!"

"We cannot have this! We must contact Earth's Magic council, Alma's too. Best to contact the Spectrans as well. They may have Darkness Manipulation powers and Necromagic, but they are of the few that have those powers that actually use them for good! They will be the best candidates for fighting evil zombies!" Nasira said, pacing up and down. "I also believe that the Erendorians can help, with their shape-shifting magic!"

"I'll go talk to Marcus and Jamilah. Marcus should be able to persuade King Joran and Queen Sapphira from Spectra and Jamilah can take care of King Ronald and Queen Kimora in Erendor!" Hasim said, suddenly disappearing.

"What about us?" Amora asked. Marjani nodded in agreement.

"What can we do?" Ichigo asked.

"Ichigo, I want you to take all your fellow Keepers to their respective countries and let them inform the various magic councils. Get them together and ask the leaders to come to Saurian with as many fighters as they can as soon as they possibly can. As they know, an Immortal can be a formidable opponent, so we need all the help we can get! You can use your telepathic link to keep in touch. I will go back to Saurian myself and tell President Reiner to mobilize the forces, as well as going to Wispera and talking to their Prime Minister and their Immortal, Alyssa! We will need their Empathy powers to keep the masses calm!" Nasira said, disappearing.

* * *

"Wow." Lindsay said.

"You guys sure move fast!" Gwen commented.

"We had to, or the world would be in even worse a condition than it is today!" Hasim said.

"Wow. I don't think even _we_ knew all of this!" Aideen exclaimed.

"We have a telepathic link too? I heard you mention one!" Bridgette said.

"Yes, yes you do have one, Bridgette! All Keepers do! It comes in useful quite a lot! You could be anywhere in the world and still keep in touch! We've found it very useful whenever we've had to split up, whether on a mission or otherwise. It works whether you're separated by streets, countries, planets, heck, even galaxies!" Marissa explained.

"This _is_ a _**voluntary**_ telepathic link, right?" Heather asked, hesitantly.

"Yes, yes it is. You can open and close it as you like and if you need to, direct it to only a particular Keeper!" Vesta explained.

"Oh thank goodness!" Heather breathed a sigh of relief. Deanna raised an eyebrow.

"What other powers do we have?" Lindsay asked.

"Let's see. We've already covered Omnilingualism and your telepathic link; so that means we haven't told you about the fact that you also have enhanced senses, dexterity, agility and strength now! With the exception of Lindsay, flight comes only when you are transformed!" Aideen said, counting off the various abilities on her fingers.

"Don't forget being able to actually _turn into_ your element!" Deanna exclaimed.

"Uh, guys?" Izzy asked in a worried tone.

"Ye- _eek!_" Aideen jumped when she saw Izzy standing in the corner. However Izzy was now at least twelve feet tall and half as wide.

"_Oh no!_ One regular sized Izzy is too many; but now there's a giant Izzy? That spells trouble!" Heather said, shivering.

"How the hell did I get like this and how do I get back to normal?"The 12 foot Izzy asked, even more worried than ever.

"I was hoping you wouldn't get that one! Resizing! I had that one as well and it's rather tricky to master!" Aideen said, face-palming.

"Okay. Take a deep breath Aideen. You can do this!" she paused.

"Just think of you being your regular size, Izzy. _Concentrate._ Tell yourself that you don't need the extra height and weight and be absolutely sure of it!"

"I'll try!" Giant Izzy exclaimed. She glowed in a flash of red light and then began to shrink down to her regular size.

"Thank goodness!" Aideen and Izzy exclaimed together. The others laughed.

"Uh, guys?" Akari asked. "Where is Lindsay?" she asked looking around for her. Lindsay was nowhere to be seen.

"Um, I'm right here!" Lindsay's voice called out from the middle of the room. "Can't you see me?"

"No, no I cannot!" Akari said. "And neither can the others! Stop being invisible and make yourself visible again! Before you ask, just imagine yourself visible again and you should-" Akari paused as Lindsay once again became visible.

"We're not going to finish the story with all these_ interruptions_ today, are we?" Deanna asked.

"Technically yes, since Nasira _has_ frozen time, after all..." Heather replied.

"I'll take over the story now Hasim." Nasira said. "After the story is done, you'll have some time to flex your powers a bit so you can at least learn to keep them under wraps unless it's absolutely necessary to reveal them. I doubt that you want your hair 'acting up' while in a challenge, Heather, or you Gwen to accidentally turn off the electricity in the plane again. As for you three..." Nasira said, pointing to Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay. "I doubt that you want to either turn into an ice statue, multiply yourself or go invisible on live television during your Aftermath show..." the three nodded fervently.

"So, the story left off when we were mobilizing the various countries and planets against Radcliffe as soon as we possibly could..."

* * *

**(1)** A person who was Cipangonian was from a country back then which was called Cipango. However Cipango no longer exists; it is now called Japan.

**(2)** Gaul was France's previous name.

**(3)** This translates to "The School for Magical Girls" from French to English.

**(4)** Aragon was once ruled under King Ferdinand until he married Queen Isabella of Castille and the two Kingdoms united to form Spain.

**(5)** The Orinoco region can be found in South America.

* * *

**So, yeah. I've decided to split this chapter. This chapter is fairly long and it contains a lot of background info, perhaps too much to just throw out into one chapter! You've gotten to see younger versions of Nasira and Hasim, met the Keepers before Vesta, Marissa, Aideen, Deanna and Akari, and even seen the very first Keepers! Radcliffe hasn't been around much in this chapter, I've noticed, but you're really going to get some more background info on him soon!**

**Remember, I love hearing from you guys, so feel free to leave your usual compliments, criticisms, questions and suggestions!**


	6. A History of Keepers and Magic Part 2

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Back in Radcliffe's castle, he sat, on his throne once again. The room looked almost the same as before, except that this time, a large flat-screen television was being wired up by Carl, whose hands trembled nervously as he worked.

"_Can't you go any faster Carl?_" Radcliffe asked impatiently, head resting in one hand and his other hand tapping his fingers on his lap.

"Well, you see Master; this planet isn't exactly wired up for technology any more you see..." Carl explained, not looking up as he spoke.

"Hurry up!" Radcliffe said, bored. He reached behind his throne and pulled out a long staff that looked like two thick, black snakes intertwined. At the top, in the space between the snakes' heads which had silver fangs protruding from them, was a glowing, dark, orange-brown orb.

He looked at it for a second, looked at Carl and then a mischievous smile appeared on his face. He stood up, and aimed the staff at Carl. It glowed brightly for a moment, and then sent a blast of light at him.

Carl dropped the wires he was holding and ran from the room holding his behind in pain, howling.

"Perhaps _that_ will make you go faster, when I say so, _hmm_?" he smirked, blowing at the top of his staff, which was now smoking. The rest of his minions, who stood around the room in various corners in hooded, dark-purple cloaks, had varying reactions. Some laughed, some were talking to each other excitedly and others shrunk back nervously.

"Don't think I won't do it to any of you all either!" Radcliffe said loudly to the room, the other occupants of which immediately quieted.

* * *

Back at Playa Des Losers 2, Nasira was continuing the story where they had left off earlier, the New Keepers listening eagerly, hanging onto every word and even though they had somewhat heard this story before, this time it included details that they had never heard before and so the Old Keepers had similar levels of interest.

"So, I arrived in Saurian and headed straight for President Reiner's office to tell her the terrible news. As you can guess, she was none too pleased at the developments..." Nasira started.

* * *

Back in President Reiner's office back in Saurian, Nasira sat reclining in a black leather armchair watching the President pace up and down her office with an impassive look on her face.

"_What? _How could this have happened? Why would Radcliffe want to go bad! Oh no, this is not good! Not good at all!" she exclaimed.

"I know it is not, but it will do no good for you to panic! That's exactly what he wants Joanne!" Nasira exclaimed. "Hasim and the Keepers have gone for help and I myself intend to leave for Wispera shortly!"

"Good, good." President Reiner said, absentmindedly rubbing her chin. "Who has Hasim gone to get?" she asked.

"Us." Called a voice from the doorway. The two women looked up to see Hasim in the doorway and six people behind him.

The first two behind him, a man and woman stepped into the room.

"Marcus and Jamilah. Good to see you again." Nasira said, standing up to greet them as Hasim walked to stand beside her.

"Only sorry it had to be under these circumstances though..." Marcus grumbled. He was a tall, lanky dark-skinned man with dark brown eyes and black hair in a slight afro. He wore blue jeans, a dark- purple-and-black sweater vest and black sneakers.

"Indeed Marcus. Who would have guessed that one of The Seven would have gone bad?" Jamilah asked. She was of average height, skinny and looked Middle-Eastern. She wore half-moon glasses with black frames. Her outfit consisted of a long, light-green halter-top dress with dark green, flowing sleeves, a brown, chunky waist-belt and brown flip-flops.

Meanwhile the other four people, two women and two men in the room were talking to the President.

"Your Majesties." She acknowledged them nodding.

"There is no need for such formalities Joanne! Call us by our names!" one of the men exclaimed, the woman beside him nodding in agreement. This couple was also dark-skinned with black hair and hazel eyes. The man was tall and somewhat muscular with a buzzcut while the woman was of average height, only reaching to about halfway up his arm. Her hair was in waist-length dreadlocks.

The other couple was slightly tanned. The man had short, dark-brown hair and violet eyes. He was of average height. The woman with him was short and had curly, strawberry-blonde hair that reached to her shoulders and light blue eyes.

"I agree with Joran. No need for such formalities. What is this, a council meeting!" the woman with blonde hair exclaimed.

"You're right, Kimora. You're fully right." Joanne said, agreeing.

"So, where do we move from here?" asked Joran's wife, Sapphira.

"Our armies are nearby, ready to come if we call!" the man accompanying Kimora exclaimed.

"Ronald is right. Our resources are ready and available to help you with this threat!" Kimora agreed.

"Great. Nasira said she was going to get Alyssa and President McNeil of Wispera, so we'll talk strategy when they get-" Joanne was interrupted by a flash of purple light, that was Nasira going to get the aforementioned individuals.

Soon there was another flash of light, this time gold and Ichigo was suddenly standing in the middle of the room with the other Keepers and a number of other individuals standing behind her.

"Getting kind of crowded in here, now isn't it?" Hasim commented. Some of the people in the room chuckled.

"Is it really true?" one of the people asked. "That Zenith has been destroyed and Samuel is nowhere to be found?"

"Unfortunately yes. It seems that The Seven Immortals is now down to The Six, which is if you count Radcliffe..." Sapphira answered.

"I only wish that we had an Immortal that could help you all..." the same person replied.

"Many other worlds do not have even one Immortal, unlike the five 'lucky' ones, Alma, Spectra, Erendor, Wispera and Zenith. But I guess Alma and Zenith are rather unlucky at the moment, for even though Alma has produced three, one of them is now evil and has caused Zenith to have exploded into smithereens!" Ichigo said.

"Radcliffe as an Immortal is going to be a real pain to take out, isn't he?" Amora groaned.

"Not if we all work together effectively!" Ronald exclaimed.

The all-too-familiar flash of purple light appeared once again and Nasira was back once again. The two people with her stumbled slightly.

"I still loathe teleporting with you, Nasira!" the man exclaimed. She shrugged. He was white, with slicked back dark red hair and brown eyes.

The woman with him, a woman with an Indian appearance with straight black hair to her shoulders in a ponytail, who wore a red sari with gold trim and a long-sleeved black shirt beneath it, gold flats and large, gold hoop earrings, looked at Nasira reproachfully. "I agree with President McNeil!" she exclaimed. "Next time, I teleport myself!" Nasira rolled her eyes.

"One would think you would get used to it by now, Alyssa!" she said to her.

"_Not the way you do it..._" Alyssa grumbled.

Hasim muttered a spell and pointed his staff to the middle of the room and an image of two aborigine looking people, a man and a woman appeared. They were both tall. The woman's hair was in a short, curly bob and the man was lean with cropped black hair.

"We can't do this for long. Lasiandra is having trouble defending itself." The couple, King Mowan and Queen Sollela said.

"_So._ Now that we're all here, let's get down to business, now shall we?" President Reiner declared. The room fell silent as she waved her arms and a large map of Alma appeared in the middle of the room.

"So, I'm guessing that Radcliffe may possibly come after us next. After all, he knows us well and knows what we're capable of..." she trailed off as Ichigo suddenly gasped.

"What is it? What is wrong?" Hasim asked.

"She's having a vision, and man, it is _not_ pretty!" Marjani exclaimed.

The room suddenly started chattering.

"What is the vision of?" Nasira asked, urgently.

"_Radcliffe..._ He's going after Earth next!" Ichigo exclaimed.

"This isn't good... Isn't good at all..." Madeline said.

"He's going to destroy our home!" Ana wailed.

"Oh, _hell_ no! _I happen to like where I live!_ LET'S GO!" Amora exclaimed, stalking out the door.

"Amora is right. We must head him off before Earth suffers Zenith's fate!" President McNeil said.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Kimora exclaimed, as she morphed into a pterodactyl and flew out a nearby window. Ronald ran behind her and jumped out the same window, but before he could hit the ground, he turned into a fighter jet and flew alongside her.

Mowan and Sollela's image disappeared as there was screaming heard in the background.

Sapphira and Joran suddenly became transparent; ghost-like and floated out another window.

Nasira teleported Marcus, Jamilah and some of the Earth people with her.

Hasim took Presidents Reiner and McNeil with him.

Alyssa took even more of the Earth people with her.

Outside the office, the other Keepers were trying to calm Amora down. "_How DARE he! HOW DARE HIM!_" she shrieked, her hair turning into flames.

"Calm down, Amora! We need to go now!" Ana exclaimed.

"Ana is right. Let's move out!" Madeline exclaimed.

Amora slowly calmed down, hair returning to normal.

Ichigo waved her arms and they glowed silver. A large, silvery portal appeared in front of them and she gestured the remaining Earth people to go ahead of them.

"Well," she took a deep breath as she stepped inside. "Our first major battle. And it's to save our home, Earth, no less! You girls ready?" she asked the others.

Madeline nodded, Amora raised an eyebrow as if to suggest that _she_ wasn't ready was stupid, Marjani exclaimed, "Of course!" and Ana sighed. "As ready as I'll ever be, I guess..." she shrugged.

"Great. Let's go." She said as she disappeared into the portal. The others followed her and the portal quickly faded away behind them.

* * *

"Wow. Radcliffe can sure clear a room quickly huh?" Bridgette joked. The others chuckled.

"That he can, Bridgette, that he can." Hasim smiled.

"The Erendorians are Shape-Shifters, huh?" Gwen asked.

"Yes." Nasira answered.

"I noticed that Queen Kimora and King Ronald changed into two different kinds of things. He changed into a fighter jet and she changed into a pterodactyl. Why could they both not change into the same thing? Wouldn't the fighter jet move faster?" Gwen asked.

"That is a good question Gwen." Nasira said. "Marissa, care to answer?" she asked, looking towards the former Water Keeper.

"Certainly! You see, the Magic Council has seen that there are three classes of Shape-Shifting. There is Object Shape-Shifting, as King Ronald did, Animal Shape-Shifting as Queen Kimora did or Human Shape-Shifting!" Marissa exclaimed.

"Huh? But I never heard any Human Shape-Shifting in there..." Bridgette said, puzzled. Marissa sighed.

"That is because Human Shape-Shifting is the trickiest of all." Marissa said.

"Wait, wait, wait. You're saying that it's easier for someone to change into a fighter jet or an ancient dinosaur than to change how they look?" Heather scoffed.

"_Can it Heather!_" Deanna exclaimed. Heather immediately shrunk back. Marissa rolled her eyes.

"You know, Vesta's right. I'm glad you didn't get the Fire Element too..." Marissa said.

"But look who has it now..." Aideen muttered, thumbing Izzy over her shoulder, who was darting from place to place in the room madly, with a ball of fire in her hands. She tripped and suddenly the table was on fire.

"Isabella," Aideen said slowly. "How many things do you plan on setting fire to today?" she asked wearily as Bridgette and Marissa went over to put it out.

"_Don't call me Isabella!_" Izzy shrieked. Gwen, Lindsay, Heather and Bridgette covered their ears.

"Stupid Twilight has ruined my name! _Call-me-IZZY!_" she shouted.

"It's true." Gwen shrugged. "Twilight has ruined a lot of things. Vampires don't sparkle or look cute!" Gwen exclaimed.

"But I actually liked Twilight!" Lindsay exclaimed, indignant.

"_You would!_" Heather said, rolling her eyes.

"Correction: Vampires don't look cute _unless they want to!_" Vesta corrected her.

"How do you know that?" Bridgette asked.

"We had to help put down a vampire rising on Spectra once. When they get angry, they really get ugly!" Akari exclaimed, shuddering.

"Wait a minute. Marissa was explaining about Human Shape-Shifting to us but the conversation suddenly lead us to vampires!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"Ah yes. As I was saying as I was _rudely_ interrupted..." Marissa said, glaring at Heather. Deanna also glared at her.

"Why is everyone angry at _me_ today!" Heather screeched.

Marissa ignored her. "Human Shape-Shifting isn't _just_ limited to changing your appearance. If you change into someone you actually know exists, you can copy their powers-at least for a short period of time..."

"...So you might not know how to handle their powers and things can go awry, right?" Izzy asked, finally calming down.

"Precisely." Marissa replied.

"How do you know so much about Shape-Shifting, Mandy?" Lindsay asked. Marissa raised an eyebrow at her, and then glanced at Akari, who was shaking her head.

"I lived on Erendor for a few years after it was our turn to give Radcliffe the beat-down!"

"Oh..."

"Don't forget that it is also possible for you to inherit their physical and mental handicaps as well. Knew someone like that once. Poor Santos. Never knew what hit him..." Hasim shook his head as he tsk-tsked.

"Thank goodness our _dear old Raddy_ never had that power!" Akari exclaimed.

" '_Raddy'_?" Bridgette raised an eyebrow.

"Dear?" Heather added.

"We always used to call him that to taunt him. He loathes that nickname; it usually distracts him when you call him that- remember that, it may come in handy!" Aideen exclaimed.

"Kind of like a certain Latino male with a Lady Gaga song named after him, huh Heather?" Gwen said, taunting her. Heather immediately blushed, then huffed and turned away and Bridgette's expression hardened.

"_**Don't **_talk about Alejandro around me." Heather huffed.

"For once, I agree with Heather!" Bridgette declared.

"But _why_?" Lindsay asked. "Alejandro's not so bad, is he?"

"How many times do we have to tell you Lindsay? _Evil-Jandro is __**not**__ a nice person!_" Bridgette said.

The others in the room watched this conversation with great interest.

"Hmm... Heather and _Al_. The _ultimate_ evil couple. I shudder at the thought." Gwen said, actually shuddering.

"You know that if something freaks _me_ out, then it's really freaky, and the thought of them together _definitely_ freaks me out!" Izzy declared.

"Oh please. I like Alejandro about as much as I liked having my head shaved bald in the first season, thanks to _Linsiot_..." Heather said, glaring at Lindsay.

"This coming from the girl who says she has long-term goals of ruling Europe..." Izzy said, rolling her eyes.

"Like you're one to talk!" Heather exclaimed.

The Old Keepers raised an eyebrow at this.

"_I don't think I'm going to like training this girl at all. Not one bit..._" Deanna said through the Old Keepers' telepathic Link.

"_Well you're the only one that can do it, so you'll just have to deal!_" Vesta replied.

"_Deanna, you're hardly one to complain. I got the psycho hose-beast!_" Aideen commented.

"_Ruling Europe? Seriously?_" Marissa asked, skeptical.

"I _don't doubt it... Anyway, Deanna, you can't complain. I got the idiot!_" Akari said.

"_Looks like Marissa and I got the only two sane, not stupid, and non-egoistical ones then!_" Vesta exclaimed, then grinned at Deanna, Akari and Aideen physically.

"As _interesting_ as this conversation is, Nasira, can we get back to the story please?" Heather asked.

"That we will. You've chit-chatted for long enough!" Nasira declared.

* * *

The First Keepers were now flying high in the sky, in their Keeper forms, heading towards a large group of people, the five remaining Immortals at the head.

As they landed, Alyssa walked briskly towards them.

"Any news?" she asked.

"We've heard from some people in my country. The news isn't exactly great..." Marjani said.

"Drat!" Alyssa exclaimed, the hopeful look she had on her face immediately disappearing.

"_As was expected._" Nasira said, suddenly appearing at Alyssa's side and looking at the Empath with a look of annoyance. The Keepers raised an eyebrow at this.

"And?" Alyssa encouraged Marjani, looking back at Nasira with a slightly hurt look on her face.

"They think that he may be hiding somewhere further north of this continent. Apparently the Moroccans have been having trouble with his zombie armies as well..." she continued.

"_Hmm..._" Ana thought to herself, standing aside from the others. "_Something there doesn't sound right. If he's __**hiding out**__ in Morocco and biding his time, then why doesn't he maintain a low profile while he gathers his strength to try and beat us? Why draw attention to himself with massive zombie armies?_" She continued.

"Um, gu-gu-guys?" she stammered.

"No time, Ana. To Morocco we head!" Ichigo declared.

"B-b-but..." Ana tried to say.

"There's no time for chit-chat. We must leave!" exclaimed Marcus.

Ana sighed. "They wouldn't have listened to me anyway, I guess. No one would've." She muttered to herself as she took off again.

Shortly afterward, when everyone was on their way, Ana flew at the back of the pack, quite unable to shake the feeling that something was wrong.

"_Hello Anacaona._"

"Oh n-no!" Ana exclaimed as whom should she turn around to see but- Radcliffe, flying in the air behind her, with his staff in hand, wearing a dark orange hooded cloak with the hood down.

"Guy-" but before Ana could finish calling out for help, Radcliffe had sent a beam of orange-brown light towards her which hit her, knocking her unconscious and making her de-transform and fall to the ground.

Ichigo seemed to have sensed something since she suddenly halted mid-flight and looked around to where Ana had been.

"Must be flying invisible." She shrugged.

But the truth was, Anacaona, the first Air Keeper had actually been abducted by Radcliffe, the most evil wizard of all time...

* * *

"Oh no!" Lindsay squealed in fear, clutching her face.

"That bastard!" Izzy screamed.

"How the hell," Heather exclaimed, "Could you not realize that your Air Keeper was kidnapped, and when you were right there at that!"

"I never thought I'd say it _again,_ but I actually agree with Heather. How could something like that happen, when you were right in front of her?" Bridgette asked.

"I agree." Vesta spoke up. "Nasira, Hasim, what happened there?"

"It was a new power of his." Nasira frowned. "He can conceal his presence. Like for example, even when you're invisible, a person can feel your presence. But him? He found a way around it..."

"Luckily that is no longer the case. Over the centuries, he has lost most of his powers. He knows this and he's getting especially vindictive. He knows that you are the Keepers prophesized to defeat him, so he's _really _getting desperate. He's going to pull out all the stops to try and defeat you instead!" Hasim explained.

"Hmm..." Bridgette said. "Prophesy? What prophesy?" Bridgette asked.

Akari stood up to explain. "Shortly before we defeated Radcliffe, a prophesy was made by Queen Brenda, the current Queen of Spectra's grandmother, who is now deceased, by the way. Such a wonderful woman she was. But I digress. The prophesy said that your generation would be the one to defeat him for good. That he would actually lose his immortality when battling you."

"Wow..." Lindsay gasped.

"How is that even possible?" Gwen asked.

"_Hmm..._" Nasira thought. "I honestly cannot answer that one. However, I am sure that you will be able to figure out how to do it when the time comes." She said.

"How are we going to meet all these people from all these different planets who will help us?" Heather asked.

"Simple. As Keepers, you have a telepathic link to your predecessor, if they're still alive, that is. We will send each of your predecessors a message and then they'll be able to forward that message to you through that link whenever we're coming for you. Then you'll be able to prepare for the trips. You'll meet the other Immortals there and the current rulers of those planets too." Nasira said.

"For once Vesta hands over the Silver Star to Gwen ..." Nasira paused, pointing to said object with her staff which Vesta was currently wearing around her neck.

Everyone turned to look at it.

"... your predecessors will lose half of their own powers, both those that are Elemental or Magic related. However the extras like Omnilingualism in all cases, portal making in Vesta's case and Dehydration and Puppetry in Marissa's case don't usually diminish as they have to teach those specialty skills to their successors as they are the extra abilities that the Energy and Water Keepers always have." Nasira finished.

"But why?" Lindsay asked, looking slightly sad.

"That is the way it always has been, Lindsay." Akari said, stepping forward to put a reassuring hand on her successor's shoulder. "And we'll be fine! We will _still_ have enough of our Elemental and Magic powers to train you, even though they will be weakened since we will no longer be the active Keepers..." Akari said, slightly frowning.

"So, now that we've dealt with those issues, let's get back to the story." Nasira said.

* * *

Ana awoke from her unconsciousness, dazed. She sat up, rubbing her head looking around her, dazed.

"What the- where the hell am I?" she asked, finally getting to her feet. As she did, she observed her surroundings.

_She was in was a large, dimly lit room, lavishly decorated in a Goth-like fashion. A magnificent dark red carpet covered the majority of the dark stone floor..._

"_Hello there, Anacaona._" Ana immediately tensed at the sound of that voice.

"_You._" She said, pointing in the direction of the voice.

"That's right, dear Keeper of Air. Me." Radcliffe stepped out of the shadows.

"_**Don't**__ call me dear._" She seethed, clenching her fists.

"Ah, but your stammering has ceased! Congratulations! What has caused this development?" Radcliffe asked, smirking.

"My anger at you, you creep!" she replied, sending a blast of air his way, in which Radcliffe had to brace himself, but he still managed to keep his ground.

"My, my. Dear, little, timid Anacaona has finally grown up!" Radcliffe taunted her.

"I just realized that I have to stand up for myself and stop letting bastards like you push me around!" Ana replied, furious.

"Relax, Anacaona. I merely wanted to talk." Radcliffe said, going up the stairs to sit on his throne.

"When you want to talk to someone, you don't just knock them unconscious and kidnap them!" Ana exclaimed.

"_Ana, Ana, where are you?_" Ichigo screamed through the telepathic link.

"_Yeah, little friend. Where are you? Is something wrong?_" Madeline added.

"_No, nothing's wrong, dumbass! Ana's missing and we can't find her. Everything's perfect!_" Ana almost smiled at Amora's sarcasm, even at a time like this.

Luckily she did not, for the telepathic link was among the powers they had that Radcliffe had never stuck around long enough to learn about, and letting him know about it would definitely not be good.

"_Well, if you count being kidnapped by Radcliffe as okay, then I'm feeling really on top of the world right now..._" she said.

"_Wait, WHAT?_" The other four practically screamed.

"_I thought that creep had something to do with it! When I get my hands on that creep I'll..._" Marjani started.

"_He says he wants to talk._" Ana said, mentally rolling her eyes and sending through the Link a memory of her brief conversation with Radcliffe before.

"_He can talk to my fist when I see him again!_" Marjani roared. "_I will rip him apart with my bare hands!_"

"_I'll help you!_" Amora screamed.

"_Stop screaming in my head, dammit!_" Ana exclaimed. _"He's talking again. And then there's the fact that you all are giving me a headache..._"

"_Well, hurry up! The Immortals and even everyone else here are looking for you!_" Madeline said.

"_I'll be fine. I'll join you as soon as I can!_" Ana said, closing off the link as Radcliffe spoke again.

"Well," he said, pacing up and down the room. "I've been doing some thinking and I think that you should join me..."

"NEVER!" Ana shouted, powering up and finally transforming into her Keeper form.

Radcliffe raised an eyebrow. "I thought that since you are a loner by nature and since you and I always got along very well, in fact you got along better with me than with the other immortals... before I decided to seek what was mine..."

"_What is yours?_ _WHAT IS YOURS?_ _Nothing is yours here!_ Destroying worlds? You have no right to hurt people like that and destroy their homes as you did to Zenith! And Abby! She's a pretty great person! _Why'd you have to hurt her?_" Ana went off in a tirade, hair twisting around her head in gusts of wind.

"**If you think I'd join you, then you're crazy.**" Ana said slowly, forming a tornado in her hands.

"Very well then." Radcliffe said. Ana could hear more danger in the tone of his voice than in the deadliest curse.

He got out his staff, powered it up and began to fire off at her. She fired the tornado back at him, which blew him off his feet at the same time that bunches of orbs of orange-brown light emerged from the staff. She flew expertly, dodging all of them and went straight out a window.

"Times like this when I wish I could make portals too..." Ana grumbled.

Almost as soon as she said the words, a large silvery portal appeared in front of her.

She didn't think twice as she flew through it, just in the nick of time- and happened to tumble out right at Ichigo's feet.

"Thank you girls! That creep, he just started attacking me!" Ana breathed as the others crowded around her.

"You managed to get out in the nick of time then!" Madeline smiled.

"How did you know where to send it?" Marjani asked Ichigo.

"I have no clue. I guess the portal just knew where to go by itself, huh?" Ichigo replied.

"Lucky it did!" Ana and Madeline exclaimed together. Amora chuckled.

"Let's go send Radcliffe into oblivion!" Amora cheered as the Keepers walked back to the rest of the group.

* * *

"And that is the entire story we have to share for now. The rest, you will learn that in stages as you prepare to battle Radcliffe for what _I hope_ will be the last time..." Nasira finished.

"Moral of the story: Radcliffe will do _anything_ and I mean _anything_ to get you to his side or try to weaken the team in any way!" Hasim added.

"Creep. Kidnapping Ana like that to try and take over the universe." Heather mumbled.

"I wonder what made him go so bad in the first place..." Lindsay said, thoughtfully.

"He got greedy, I think, Lindsay. He got greedy." Bridgette answered, shaking her head.

"That he did." Marissa said, nodding in agreement.

"Now that out little intro into the history of why you are Keepers in the first place..." Nasira said, looking pointedly at the Old Keepers.

"Yes. Before I give the Star to Gwen, we have something to pass onto you." Vesta said, stepping forward. The other Old Keepers stepped forward as well.

The New Keepers, getting the feeling that they should move forward to them, did so.

"Hold out your hands." Vesta instructed. The girls did so.

Each Old Keeper's hands began to glow in their element's signature colour. As the glow began to subside, each Old Keeper held a fairly large, black leather bound book in her hands, which they then handed over to their successors.

"The Elemental Books." Marissa said. "Each Keeper since the beginning of time has taken the time to add something to this book. Elemental attack and defense spells, ordinary spells that they either invented or improved upon, along with a little magic history." She explained.

Each girl noticed that as they looked at their respective books, that each had a different symbol on the front of it, representing their elements. Gwen's had a silver star on it, ("Naturally!" Vesta commented, actually grinning.), Bridgette's had a droplet of water, Izzy's had a small flame, Heather's had a leaf and Lindsay's had a small tornado. They also noticed that where the lock would be on a book such as this, there was a small patch of colour in their element's signature colour.

When they looked at their predecessors, puzzled, they chuckled. "This is so no one can open the book except you. Even if they stole it and used their most powerful spell on it, it won't budge. Jamilah, one of the Immortals you haven't met yet, thought of this idea. And even if they got a hold of it somehow when it was open, it would be in a code that only you could decipher." Aideen explained.

"And a good idea it was too." Hasim commented. Nasira nodded in agreement.

"But how do we open them?" Lindsay asked, looking confused once again.

"_That's a good look for her!_" Heather thought snidely.

"_Oh shut up!_" Gwen thought back.

Heather looked stunned. "_Get out of my head!_" she thought back.

"_Ooh! Telepathic link! Fun..._" Izzy said.

"_Oh please. Do you think I like being able to share my thoughts with you like this?_" Gwen retorted.

"It will open whenever you need it to." Akari answered.

"Oh..."

"_Why are you guys all talking in my head?_" Lindsay asked her fellow Keepers.

"_Could you girls at least try to be civil when using the Link? You're giving me a headache..._" Bridgette requested, rubbing her forehead.

"And now for the most important presentation of all." Vesta said, reaching to her neck. Everyone else in the room fell silent and followed her movements as she removed the Silver Star from her neck for the final time.

"Gwen, I hope you understand the importance of this object." Vesta started. Gwen nodded.

"This is not just a piece of jewellery. This has been handed down through many generations of Energy Keepers from Ichigo the first, to Alice my predecessor from her to me and now from me to you. When the time comes, you will be passing it on to your own successor. Take care of it, will you?" she said, as she placed it into Gwen's hands and clasped her own around them.

Each of the Old Keepers began to glow in their element's signature colour and so did their successors.

"I will take care of it, Vesta. That I can guarantee." Gwen smiled as she fastened it around her own neck.

"Now that this is over with, I suggest you all get back to where we were before all of this happened and do as best as you can to act as if nothing has happened out of the ordinary. Your friends or even not-so-friends cannot know about your powers, _yet._" Nasira said.

"Easier said than done." Bridgette commented as she, Izzy and Lindsay ran to do as Nasira suggested.

"As for you two, I'll take you back, while Nasira takes care of your predecessors." Hasim said. The two girls nodded.

One by one, Nasira and the Old Keepers disappeared and soon, so did Hasim, Gwen and Heather.

* * *

They soon reappeared on the beach and ran to take their places.

"Good luck." He said, smiling at them before he left.

_"Gonna need a lot of luck..."_ Heather mumbled to herself.


	7. I See London

**Disclaimer:** See chapter 1.

* * *

In Radcliffe's castle, he finally had his television wired up and was now flicking through the channels looking for Total Drama to watch. His spy had finally gotten the names of the girls and he was now looking to observe them during the course of the show.

As soon as they started the arrivals in Total Drama Island, he took out his staff and cast a spell on the television.

"_Magica Homenum Revelio._" He muttered. As each girl was introduced into the game, they glowed with the signature colour of their element, so now he knew who was who and what Element they kept.

As he studied the show in its early stage he raised an eyebrow at two of the male contestants who entered the game.

"Hmm...That boy there..." he thought, staring at one of them. "I remember when I first heard of the Keeper portrait hall... His family guards it!" he sighed and propped up an elbow. "_They'll be sorry that they ever got in my way of destroying it..._" He said nonchalantly as he turned his gaze to the other teenaged male. "As for him..." he said. "_I sense a magical aura about him. It feels familiar but I can't place it, DAMMIT!_" he roared. Many of his minions shrunk back in fear.

"I will eventually boy, just you wait! Then I'll have your powers for myself!"

As the show progressed, three more magical figures were revealed all of which shocked him greatly.

"Hmm... He doesn't look like him, but yet he bears many power similarities to him. But I made him disappear centuries ago! That can't really be him, can it! _This is so infuriating! I cannot tell who exactly he is either!_" He stomped across the room and in his frustration, he pointed his staff at one of his minions who was suddenly lifted into the air in rings of Radcliffe's signature orange-brown light and thrown out the window, flailing and screaming in terror.

He smirked slightly as he went back to his throne to continue his observations, with the rest of his minions and Carl cowering in fear.

The last two also provoked similar levels of interest in the evil wizard.

"The princess of Nadir-competing in an Earth reality show! That's hilarious!" he was now doubled up in laughter. "She'll _never_ last long! King Rajeev and Queen Lakshmi must be losing their touch, letting their only daughter compete in something as dangerous as this! And on Earth where she now has to hide her powers, no less!" He chuckled, and then became more serious as he gazed on the last person to catch his attention.

"His family has been in my service for years. Since he's on the inside, he should be of good use in helping me to divide and thus conquer this crucial group of Keepers! But how? I still need to decide who to pick off individually! Ugh! Evil scheming is such hard work!" he said, suddenly making a glass of red wine appear in his hand and taking a sip. Swirling it around he said, "I just need to plan out all the details and then mobilize my inside agent and once I do..." he laughed a very cold, evil laugh which made all others (except one particular person in a corner of the room who wore an ice-blue cloak!) present shiver.

He looked at them. "Why be afraid, friends? We are going to conquer many planets and galaxies soon, once the Keepers are out of the way! We should rejoice!" he said, raising a glass into the air.

Many of them just gave a frightened sort of chuckle in response. He looked at them and rolled his eyes.

* * *

Back on the Total Drama Jumbo Jet, Heather was in the quietest area of the cargo hold, which she had carefully inspected for cameras beforehand and to her great relief, had found none. She took out her Elemental Book and gazed at it. "This is the first time I've actually _wanted_ to study! Wow..."

She held it in her hands and as she moved her fingers over the green patch, it slowly opened to reveal the first page.

"Oh, so _that's_ how it works!" she thought to herself.

"Oh, so the Queen Bee, who probably thinks books are beneath her, is actually studying something! What a shocker!" A voice called sarcastically. Heather whipped around to see Alejandro in the doorway.

"_What do you want?_" she snapped, quickly slamming her book shut.

"I came down here to seek refuge from the idiotic antics of the rest of my team! Tyler's clumsiness, Owen's farts and Noah's constant cynicism! It'd drive me insane if I stayed there any longer! Thank goodness that Izzy's gone at least!" he shrieked, clutching his hair.

As he came closer to her, she shuddered and experienced a brief unpleasant feeling, which grew even stronger as he neared.

"_What is this?_" she thought. "_Why do I feel like this now?_" she continued. She quickly recomposed herself.

He walked past her and as he did, he snatched her Elemental Book out of her hands.

"_HEY!_" she roared. "_GIVE THAT BACK!_" she said, standing up.

The Latino male glanced at the book he held in his hands, raised an eyebrow at the symbol on the front and looked from Heather to the book and back at Heather again, then tossed it back at her, which she had to leap up to catch.

As she tucked it under her arm, she pointed towards the door and glared at him, ordering him to leave.

"If you insist, mi señora hermosa." He said, grinning at her before striding off.

"_Jerk!_" Heather thought as she replayed his compliment in her head. "My beautiful lady." He had called her. "He doesn't mean that. He just wants to get me out of the competition just like with all the other girls he manipulated." She sighed as she got back to the book and began to read an entry written by the first Earth Keeper, Marjani.

"_There are many different kinds of things you can do as the Earth Keeper. Not only can you manipulate rocks and dirt, but you can also manipulate sand, metal of all kinds including precious metals such as gold or silver and even precious gems! My personal favourite is diamond. They are beautiful, yes, but they make such a great offensive weapon, since they're so strong and sharp!_" she read.

"Hmm... Impressive!" Heather thought as she continued.

"_You can also manipulate wood, plants, fruits, flowers and even fungi! Earth Keepers are also granted the special ability to communicate with nature to find out what has happened in a place. This ability I call retrocognition, the ability to see the past._"

"That's a lot, isn't it? I guess I'm going to like having these powers after all. They will come in useful even though I have to put Keeper duties first and foremost if I'm to help save the world from someone even worse than Chris... Never thought I'd say that there's someone worse than Chris..." she said to herself as she put away the book and went back upstairs to economy class.

* * *

All the contestants were now in economy class, complaining about the conditions they were in.

"Why are we in the loser class? _We won last time_, or at least we didn't lose..." Heather grumbled.

"Chris did say that he needed first class today for a secret special guest..." Sierra started.

"And what Chris needs, he takes from us. _Unfortunately._" Heather muttered in reply.

"_You said it!_" Gwen replied telepathically, fiddling with her Silver Star necklace, which she now wore. Heather mentally raised an eyebrow.

"_The only person who could possibly be more evil than you is him. Well, him and Radcliffe..._" Gwen added.

"_Joy. Glad to know I'm thought of in that way..._" Heather snapped mentally.

"_You're welcome._" Gwen replied, mentally smirking before physically wincing.

"_Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! OUCH!_" she shrieked aloud, clutching her sunburnt left hand, which only served to hurt it even more.

"_What's up with you Gwen?_" Bridgette thought.

"_My hand is sunburnt! Ouch! And how did you tell, Bridgette?_" Gwen asked.

"_Empathy. I can feel that you're upset. Apparently I've got that as an extra power as well as healing. I fell down some stairs here and I touched my knee which had a big gash on it and it immediately healed! Sorry I can't do the same for you!_" Bridgette replied.

"_I'm sorry too..._" Gwen replied grumpily as she winced.

"What's wrong, Gwen?" Courtney asked, looking slightly worried.

"My hand is sunburnt, I have no clue why and it hurts, dammit!" Gwen explained.

"Hmm... I have an idea how I can help!" Courtney exclaimed as she suddenly jumped up and ran off.

She promptly returned with a bucket of a mysterious white substance, which Heather raised her eyebrow at.

"Gwen and Courtney as friends. Who knew?" Heather muttered.

"Shocking, right?" Sierra piped up, next to her. "97% of Total Drama fans say they never thought they'd see the day that Courtney and Gwen would actually become friends! And 90% of those fans don't even believe that it will last!" she continued.

Heather shuddered and got up to walk to the other side of the cabin.

"What is this?" Gwen asked after Courtney told her it would soothe the burn.

"It's guano. I got it in Jamaica. It's supposed to be really good at soothing burns!" Courtney stood beside her, smiling.

"_Bonding over poop juice? Ugh! Is there anyone sane left around here?_" Heather thought.

She then looked over at Sierra using her laptop/pizza box.

"I guess not..." she said, shaking her head, before smirking mischievously as she pointed to the bucket. "You do know that guano is a nicey-nicey word for bird poop, right?" she pointed out.

Gwen immediately lifted her hand out of the bucket, wide-eyed. Heather chuckled at this reaction.

"_Is-this-true?_" she stammered at Courtney.

"_Well..._" Courtney replied sheepishly, putting a hand behind her head. "...It _is _supposed to be good for burns..."

"_UGH! Gross!_"

Heather sat there chuckling at this exchange.

"How _did_ you get that burn anyway?" Courtney asked.

"_I said I don't know!_" Gwen said, exasperated as Cody chuckled nervously in the background.

"Tweeter update!" Sierra squealed. "Gwen's hand smells like Jamaican bird doody. Cody is still cute!" she giggled. "Uh, 67 characters. Ok, 73 left. What else can I say?" she pondered.

"Considering buying myself a life on Fred's List, but having trouble deciding because they are all such a major improvement!" Noah said, imitating her. Heather almost laughed out loud at this when Sierra glared back at him for mocking her. _Almost. _Instead she just settled for a small smile.

* * *

Back at Playa De Losers 2, Izzy, Lindsay and Bridgette sat alone together in a locked room reading their Elemental Books and talking about the discoveries they had made since they started reading them.

"_Water Keepers have control over water and can do things such as making water freeze, melt, evaporate and levitate. Your powers can also be used to make natural phenomena such as waterfalls, tidal waves and whirlpools. If you wanted to, you could manipulate the water to go to depths that would otherwise be impossible because of the pressure. I've also discovered that I can pull together tiny droplets of water from the air to make larger bodies of water, heck you can even 'rip' the water out of people, resulting in dehydration! There is also the ability to make your surroundings cooler and survive in extremely cold conditions and breathe underwater. In conjunction with the Air and Energy Keepers, you can also make very powerful storms, although on your own, you can make it rain, snow or hail heavily in addition to making your surroundings extremely cold. You can also make several objects out of ice such as a levitating surfboard, ice bullets (just as effective as real ones!) and even ice swords, which are really fun!_" Bridgette read the words that Madeline had written.

"That's so cool, Bridgette! Let me read what Amora wrote!" Izzy exclaimed! "_Can I, can I, __**can I please?**_" Izzy begged.

Bridgette chuckled as did Lindsay. "All right, fine! Go ahead, Iz!"

"YAY!" Izzy shrieked as she eagerly thumbed through the book.

"_Hey there, future Fire Keepers! I, Amora, the first Fire Keeper am here writing down the things I have discovered about our powers in the hope that it will help you out someday and believe me, I've discovered quite a lot! You are capable of generating flames out of nowhere whenever you want to, not even requiring the consumption of oxygen or combustible objects to maintain the flames! You can also make your surroundings even hotter and endure extreme heat and flame without being harmed. _

_This ability allows us Fire Keepers to hurl fire at targets, incinerate most flammable objects, and produce extremely large flame blasts to incinerate your enemies! And that's just the start!_"

Izzy chuckled.

"I can already make fire balls, so now I get to try all this other cool stuff in the book too!" she exclaimed eagerly.

"_Izzy..._" Bridgette started in a warning tone. "Don't get _too_ excited about this and go start a ruckus now! Remember now, no one else can know about your powers yet!" she reminded the psycho hose-beast.

"Oh I know, I know." Izzy said, pouting as she went back to silently reading her book, eager to learn more about her new powers.

"Ooh! It's my turn Bridgette!" Lindsay squealed. Bridgette smiled, not only at the other blonde's eagerness, but at the fact that Lindsay had finally stopped calling her Bethany.

"Go ahead, Lindsay!" Bridgette said.

"Okay, Bethany!"

Bridgette face-palmed.

"_As an Air Keeper, you can psychically direct air molecules. You can also compose burst of winds, spawn tornadoes, and even siphon the air out of a villain's lungs! Sound Manipulation is also included in your powers, after all, doesn't sound travel through our Element? There is also the fact that you can generate breezes, squalls, gusts, whirlwinds, zephyrs, gales, tempests, and extremely powerful storms, if you combine your powers with the Water and Energy Keepers. Used offensively, one can slice the air like a blade or defensively, can act like a shield in the sense that you can make your immediate surroundings so windy; no villain would be able to approach you! I used that on Radcliffe a few times. It was quite entertaining to see him whipping around in the air like a rag doll!_" Lindsay read what Anacaona had written.

"That's so cool!" Izzy exclaimed.

"I wonder if Gwen and Heather have read their Elemental Books yet!" Lindsay pondered.

"Well, let's check in on them!" Bridgette suggested.

"_How?_" Lindsay asked, puzzled.

"Telepathic link, remember?" Bridgette said, tapping her forehead with a single finger.

"_Oh..._"

* * *

"Welcome to London, England, home of loads of wicked stuff: Big Ben, the London Eye, the sandwich stuffed with French fries known as the Chip Buttie..." Chris stood welcoming the contestants to their newest destination.

"I want some Chip Buttie please!" Owen exclaimed. Noah rolled his eyes.

"Ah, London. It was also home to one of the most notorious serial killers of all time... _Jack the Ripper!_"

Gwen and Heather had a brief unpleasant feeling at this.

"Hold on a minute, where's Alejandro?" Heather asked. "His team mates are here, but he isn't!"

"Who cares!" Gwen and Courtney answered in unison.

"But isn't Jack the Ripper, well... dead?" Cody asked.

Chris ignored him. "Your challenge is to follow a series of clues through the tower complex, all the way to the Ripper's secret lair. Bag the criminal mastermind before he gets you and you win. Your first clue will be found during the changing of the guards. And when I say change, I say _change_ the guards. Your clue is hidden in his uniform, so one of you has to strip him down to his gitch, until you find it. Heh, heh." Chris grinned at them.

Everyone stood there, horrified at the thought of the challenge.

"_Eew!_" Lindsay telepathically squealed.

Heather and Gwen winced.

"_Lindsay! That hurt!_" Heather exclaimed.

"_How are you guys?_" Bridgette asked.

"_Great. __**Absolutely great.**__ We have to strip these old geezer guards down to their boxers in order to find the first clue. We're doing __**wonderfully!**_" Gwen replied crabbily.

Lindsay, Bridgette and Izzy shuddered.

"_Oh wow, that's really gross!_" Izzy said.

"_No shit, Sherlock!_" Heather snapped.

"_Enough of this!_" Gwen declared. "_We have to get back to the challenge. Talk to you girls later._"

* * *

After this exchange they were now at the point where Team Amazon was down to three since Sierra and Cody had been captured. Heather had already been through the torture device and was now hurling insults at Gwen and Courtney for it.

Finally they reached the dining hall and Heather volunteered to guard the door. "It's only fair after what you two bitches put me through!" she snapped.

They raised their eyebrows at her.

"Go on! You two 'Gal Pals' go in! _I'll guard the_ _door!_" Heather insisted.

"Hey! How is that fair!" Courtney asked, indignant.

Heather suddenly snapped and took out her nail file, waving it in front of them dangerously. "_I'll show __**you**__ fair! Have you even __**seen**__ the rack marks on my ankles?_" she snapped, glaring at them.

As Gwen and Courtney ran inside, Heather received a telepathic message from the Energy Keeper. "_You can be rather scary sometimes... Hope it works on Radcliffe when the time comes!_" she remarked sarcastically.

"_Why thank you!_" Heather replied, beginning to file her nails. "_That skill does come in useful in ruling the school... and my parents.._." Heather said, with a hint of bitterness. "_Too bad it doesn't work on the sibs..._" she added, fuming.

Bridgette, even though this thought wasn't directed towards her, heard it anyway and picked up the bitterness in it at which she frowned.

"_I'll have to ask her about that sometime..._" she thought privately.

So there Heather stood, nonchalantly outside the door filing her nails, using her powers discreetly to sharpen the metal of the file as she had discovered she could do.

All of a sudden, that same unpleasant feeling spread through her, even stronger than before.

Heather, with her newly enhanced senses could hear footsteps approaching, even from a good distance away.

"_What the?_ _Who's there?_" she asked nervously, filing her nails even slower, looking around her nervously.

"_Hello?_" she asked, even more nervous than before.

Then the bushes in front of her parted to reveal-

Heather screamed, dropped the nail file and tried to run, but it was too late.

Jack the Ripper had already caught her.

* * *

Inside the dining hall as Gwen and Courtney celebrated figuring out what they _thought _was the final clue, they heard Heather's screams from outside. Gwen suddenly had a vision of Heather struggling inside a burlap sack, being held by the Ripper.

"Oh, no! Heather!" Courtney exclaimed as they ran outside, only to find Heather's abandoned nail file on the ground.

"Heather would never abandon her nail file! Jack the Ripper's got her!" Gwen said, actually looking worried about her for once.

"_Heather? Where are you? Are you okay?_" Gwen used the Link, hoping to find her.

"_No, no I am not okay, Weird Goth Girl! I just got abducted by a modern day Ripper and I'm okay! __**I'm doing just great!**_" Heather fumed.

"_Guys, are you alright? I sense a lot of fear and anxiety coming from you guys! Did Radcliffe show up or something?_" Bridgette cut in.

"_No, but Jack the Ripper sure did!_" Heather grumbled.

"_Wait, isn't Jack the Ripper well- __**dead!**_" Bridgette asked, puzzled.

"_Yeah, I actually remembered something from my World History class! Didn't he live, like centuries ago?_" Lindsay piped in.

"_Wait! Brainzilla wants to say something!_" Izzy interrupted.

"_Who's Brainzilla?_" Gwen asked.

"_Izzy's new friend!_" Izzy exclaimed.

"_A.K.A. another one of Izzy's multiple personalities..._" Bridgette explained.

"_Hello carbon-based life forms known as Gwendolyn and Heather!_" Brainzilla started.

Heather inside the bag raised an eyebrow.

"_Why would a serial killer abduct you in the middle of the filming of a reality show? It does not make sense if he wants to avoid capture...Didn't the carbon-based life form known as Christian just say it was all a challenge?_" Brainzilla/Izzy asked.

"_Yes, but so was the psycho killer with a chainsaw and a hook back on Total Drama Island..._" Gwen pointed out.

"_We seem to have the worst luck with these serial killers, don't we?" _Heather muttered.

"_Yes, but even s-" _Brainzilla was cut off as Heather suddenly cut off from the Link.

"_Heather! Heather!_" Bridgette called out to her. No response.

"_You should probably go on and win the challenge so you can get to the bottom of this problem. If you don't see Heather even then, then you know something's really and truly wrong!_" Bridgette suggested.

"Um, Gwen? **Gwen!**" Courtney shouted, breaking the Energy Keeper out of her dazed state.

"Uh? Wha? Yeah, Courtney?" Gwen answered.

Courtney sighed. "_Challenge? London? Jack the Ripper? __**Whitechapel!**_" she said, slightly annoyed.

"Yeah, right..." Gwen said, mind back on the game.

The pair ran up and down the street, trying to open the doors to every building they passed.

"_No-luck!_" Courtney panted, tired. "What about you?"

"Not a bit of luck either!" Gwen answered, not tired at all.

"Let's try that building there!" The Goth suggested, pointing to a tall building at the very end of the street.

They ran all the way there, Gwen reaching the back door of the building first.

"It's locked. Dammit!" she grumbled. "Unless..."

Gwen held up a finger, which suddenly started sparking electricity and put it in the keyhole and...

"It's open!" Gwen rejoiced just as Courtney reached her.

But as they stepped inside they heard rock music playing and bright pyrotechnic lights flashing.

"Jack the Ripper in a **nightclub?**" Courtney raised an eyebrow.

Gwen suddenly gripped Courtney's arm and pointed towards the stage.

"_Holy Schnitzel!_ Is that-?" The two girls' eyes widened in shock.

* * *

In the holding area where those captured in the course of the competition were held, Cody, Sierra, Tyler, Alejandro and Heather were all biding their time waiting for the contest to be over.

"_I can't believe that I was the first caught!_" Alejandro exclaimed indignantly. "_And that Noah! How dare he imply that I'm evil! __**Oh he will pay...**_" the Latino teen muttered.

Heather, across the room from him rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Saying that you'll make someone pay. _**Way**_ to imply that you're not evil!" she commented. Alejandro merely sat there fuming at this.

Tyler sat cheering on his teammates as they tried to solve the 'Ripper' mystery as Owen and Noah had just figured out that they were to go to a double-decker bus to solve the mystery.

Sierra was holding on to Cody tightly trying to kiss him and Cody was trying his best to escape Sierra's clutches.

"I don't care Sierra! _I-__don't__-want-a-hug!_" He said, finally escaping.

"_Don't_ _deny it, Codykins! __**YOU-NEED-A-HUG!**_" she shrieked, chasing after the unfortunate techno-geek.

"_Heather!_" Deanna called out to her.

"_Huh? Deanna? What's up?_" Heather replied.

"_The other Keepers have already been contacted. When your challenge is finished, Nasira and Hasim are coming for you. You're going to Alma to meet the people you should there and commence your training! I do hope you've started reading your Elemental Book..._" Deanna admonished her.

Heather sighed and rolled her eyes. "_Yes, Deanna. I did._" She sent her a memory of her examining the book to her predecessor.

"_Fine. Make sure you keep reading that book whenever you're free. The more you read, the easier it'll be to master your powers!_" Deanna advised.

"_Yes, __**mother.**_" Heather grumbled.

"_I heard that!_" Deanna scolded.

Heather jumped.

"So, Heather..." Alejandro sidled up to her and again that unpleasant feeling spread through her, as if he was someone she should stay away from. She ignored it, however.

"What, Ale-Jerkface?" she snapped.

"Calm down, beautiful." He said. "I just wanted to say hi. How are you?" he smiled.

"I'll be better when you leave me alone..." she muttered.

"Heather, don't be like that! How long could you possibly resist the sweet Spanish charms of Alejandro?" he said, smirking.

"You're so full of yourself, you know that?" Heather asked him.

"That's not arrogance! It's pride!" Alejandro declared.

"Same thing."

"How could you think so badly of me? I am so hurt!" he exclaimed, putting a hand to his chest.

Heather rolled her eyes as Chef suddenly bust through the door.

"Up and out, you get maggots! Challenge's over! Time to get back to the plane!" he declared, hauling them all out.

* * *

The challenge had finally been completed. Team CIRRRRH had caught the Ripper who turned out to be Ezekiel who was now in a scary-looking feral state. He had been promised a spot in the contest if he wasn't caught, but since he was, Chef threw him out the plane.

Team Amazon had brought back Duncan. After all, Chris _did _want a criminal, as Courtney had said and since Chris had apparently been searching for him, he awarded their team the win and the other team got Duncan as a 'consolation prize'.

Noah had been voted off for discovering Alejandro's treachery and after giving his teammates a subtle warning about him, he jumped out.

After all this, Gwen sat in first class reading her Elemental Book, trying to clear her mind of the crush that she shouldn't be having on Duncan, especially as she and Courtney had finally managed to become friends...

"Sigh... Let's see what Ichigo has to say about our powers. Best to do this before Nasira and Hasim stop by..." she said to herself.

"_As the Energy Keeper, you are the most powerful of the group and as such have the most responsibility. Even though the other Keepers' powers are independent of yours, they are still stronger when you are around. You can manipulate electric energy in order to __generate small sparks, high voltage lightning arcs from one's hands, conjure forth lightning from electrical charged storm clouds which you can combine with the Water and Air Keepers' powers to make a particularly strong storm , manipulate and generate energies or even discharge an excruciatingly high voltage electrical eruption from one's body. However the catch to your electricity powers is that they are strongly tied with the current emotions you experience, and you may have 'unexpected incidents' if you don't reign in your emotions. _

_It is also possible to 'pull' energy from their surroundings to create objects like creating a shield from light, a sword from sound, a small bridge from gravity, etc. Some constructs may even be invisible._

_You can also fire blasts/rays of energy from hands and control the energy of others, making them sluggish, energetic or supercharging their powers, making them stronger. _

_You can also draw energy from celestial bodies like the sun, moon and stars._" She read.

"Well, that's good and all, but I still can't get my mind off things!" Gwen exclaimed, storming out of first class to go for a walk.

Even that walk didn't help as she ran into Courtney and Duncan talking after which she immediately went to the confessional.

Duncan came in behind her and after brief playful banter, they kissed.

She felt terrible after it.

"_How could I have done that to her? I feel awful! Oh no! Courtney is going to feel so hurt when she finds out!_" Gwen said, pacing up and down first class. Courtney wasn't around, Heather was too engrossed in a magazine to pay any attention to her and Cody and Sierra were nowhere to be found as Cody had run off to hide somewhere and Sierra was hunting him down.

"_Why now, of all times? Why at all? She's gonna freak! And I'll be a goner!_" she wailed. "I've got to put it out of my mind though. I can't let anything distract me when I'm about to start training to help defend the world!" she calmed down slightly.

"_Gwen, are you all right?_" Bridgette asked. "_I feel great amounts of anxiety, regret AND confusion coming from you!_"

"_I'll be fine!_" Gwen insisted.

"_Are you sure?_"

"_Absolutely._" Gwen cut the Link.

"_This game just got harder..._" she thought.

* * *

In the President of Alma's office, President Tavares stood, along with Nasira, Hasim and two other cloaked individuals. One was notably taller than the other and wore a cream-coloured cloak, whereas the shorter individual wore a navy-blue cloak.

"So, you two. Do you understand what you have to do?" President Tavares asked them.

"Yes, we do." The taller figure answered in a female voice.

"Indeed..." said the shorter figure, which had a male voice.

"Since the Keepers are heavily involved in the Total Drama series, there is no doubt that Radcliffe will try to infiltrate the contest in order to wipe them out. We were going to ask a third individual to come to your assistance, but unfortunately, Radcliffe got to him first..." the President said.

"That won't happen to us!" the female declared.

"Oh, and your majesty, before you and your little friend go..." Hasim said.

"_I'm not her friend..._" the male muttered.

"Yes?" the female answered.

"Be careful. I know you wanted to 'have an adventure' and test your ability to get along without your powers, but isn't Chris' crazy competition a bit too much for you?" he asked.

"Not at all!" she answered, a sliver of long hair poking out from beneath the cloak. She reached out a hand to poke it back in and on that hand was a ring of gold, with a small sun made of citrine embedded in the center.

"If you insist." Nasira said, rolling her eyes.

"Very well then. I suppose you can leave..." President Tavares said. "Nasira?" he said, looking at the Mistress of Time.

She got out her staff and waved it, which caused the two cloaked individuals to be enveloped in a cloak of purple light and be teleported back to the cargo hold of the plane, where they removed their hoods.

However it was too dark to clearly define their facial features as they walked back up the steps into the main part of the plane.

* * *

Back in Radcliffe's castle, he got up from his throne and waved his staff.

A burst of orange-brown light glowed in the middle of the room and then in the middle of that very light appeared two cloaked males. One was taller than the other and wore a bottle green cloak with a black clasp and the other wore a dark red cloak with a silver clasp.

"Father, what is going on here?" the shorter one asked.

"Well there Santos. Haven't you got a rather... curious son?" Radcliffe smiled while the ice-blue cloaked individual behind him snickered.

"Well, he _does_ have a right to know..." Santos replied.

"True... Well, dear boy, you are going to work with my spy Alana here..." Radcliffe said, gesturing to the cloaked figure behind him who pulled down their hood to reveal that it was a woman with platinum blonde hair in a slanted bob, hazel eyes and pale skin. The same woman who had greeted the Old Keepers when they went to tell Nasira and Hasim about the New Keepers...

"...To take out the latest group of Keepers. Since you were already conveniently placed, I just called in an old favour that your father owes me. _After all, he couldn't have become the Ambassador of Spain to Canada without a little help, don't you agree?_"

The shorter figure stood there, stunned for a moment before taking off his cloak to reveal Alejandro beneath it.

"Father? Papa? Really?" he asked his father disbelievingly.

"It's true, Al." his father replied, removing his cloak. Alejandro did not resemble his father at all. His father had salt and pepper hair and brown eyes which sized up his son.

Alejandro flinched.

"Well, what would you say if I help you win the contest and crush the greatest threat to your doing so at the same time?" Radcliffe asked coolly.

"Get Heather out? She's the Earth Keeper isn't she? I saw her reading that Keeper's Elemental Book and immediately put the pieces together!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"And who's to say that she won't use these powers to her advantage?" Alana pointed out.

"And what about Gwen? Won't you need to get her out as well?" Alejandro asked, raising an eyebrow. "Wouldn't she be the greater threat seeing as she's the most powerful of the bunch?"

"Not in this case... You've already started working on Heather, plus the fact that unlike Gwen, she'll do whatever it takes to win, _including cheating_ to get there! I'd love to have her as a minion, but sadly, she's a Keeper, so she'd never join us..." Radcliffe shook his head regretfully.

"So. I take out the Earth Keeper so you can destroy the other Keepers easily and I get to win the million. That's the deal?" Alejandro asked.

"Absolutely." Radcliffe answered.

"I'll take it then." The Latino teen said, stepping forward to shake hands with Radcliffe to seal the deal.

"You've got quite the son there! And he really takes after Marisela, doesn't he?" Alana remarked to Santos.

"He really does look like his mother, I suppose. As for him being quite the son, I only suggested him because he was convenient. Other than that, Al's worthless." He said, unflinchingly.

Lucky for him, Alejandro did not hear this; as he was too busy laughing an evil laugh with Radcliffe...


	8. Return to Alma

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Gwen and Heather sat at the very end of first class, at the door separating it from economy, waiting.

"_5...4...3...2...1..._" Heather counted down.

Immediately after this, everyone else in the plane became still. In fact, the very plane itself became still in mid-air.

"I'm never going to get used to this, am I?" Gwen muttered.

"It does take some getting used to, doesn't it?"

Hasim stood there in the doorway with Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay behind him.

"Nasira went ahead to Saurian- Alma's capital by the way, to take your predecessors there. They're making final arrangements for your arrival. It seems as if every planet you're going to visit wants to throw a big celebration for you!" He said, grinning.

"Great. So basically we're going to have a lot of people gawking at us, aren't we?" Gwen asked, hesitantly.

"Pretty much, yes."

"_Joy..._" The Goth grumbled.

"_You guys excited? I know __**I**__ am!_" Izzy said in a rush.

"I must admit, it will certainly be different to what we've experienced here on Earth..." Bridgette admitted.

"It's not going to be like what we've read about in fairy tales, is it?" Lindsay asked hesitantly.

"Nope." Hasim replied, nonchalantly flipping the silver unicorn's head of his staff off and emptying a few jellybeans into his hand.

"Jellybeans, anyone?" he asked.

"No thanks!" they all declared.

"_How could he possibly think of jellybeans at a time like this?"_ they all thought.

"Suit yourself then!" he said, popping them all into his mouth and fixing back the staff.

"Gather around me and off we go then!" he exclaimed.

They all did so and with a flamboyant wave of his staff, they disappeared.

* * *

They arrived on the streets of Saurian to be greeted by crowds and crowds of people lining the streets and banners declaring 'Welcome to the Newest Keepers!" and decorated with various items that were in the Elements' signature colours and symbols.

"_These people sure do know how to throw a party don't they!_" Izzy declared.

"Absolutely!" Hasim smiled.

People along the street began to chatter excitedly when they spotted them.

"_Hasim is here! He's got the New Keepers!_"

"_Holy fairy wings! It's the Keepers!_"

"_Look at the Goth girl!_"

"_She's got the Star!_"

"_Our new Energy Keeper!_"

"_I can't believe this is actually happening!_"

"Well _they're_ excited..." Heather commented.

"As they should be! The arrival of New Keepers comes only every half century! Many here may probably never get a chance to be a part of it again!" Hasim explained.

"So, is that where we're going Hasim?" Lindsay asked. She was pointing at an extremely large white building with a glass dome as a roof. On the roof flew their national flag- a navy blue flag with green, red, white and gold diagonal stripes in the middle.

"Yes, Lindsay. That is the President of Alma's headquarters. You shall meet him and the Almanian Vice President as well first before we start your training." He answered.

As they walked along the route, people started to come up to them to meet them and shake their hands.

One eager little girl complimented Lindsay on her fashion sense and was rewarded with a big hug from the blonde. Indeed many of the guys were stunned at the Air Keeper's good lucks and even when she blew a kiss at them which unintentionally _literally _blew them off their feet, they sat there on the ground, still smiling goofily.

Heather was also getting quite a few catcalls herself, but unlike Lindsay, she didn't take them as well, growing her nails out to an extremely long length, turning them into steel and threatening anyone who dared catcall at her with them.

Izzy, energetic as ever went around greeting everyone she could and had actually managed to find people almost as energetic as she was and they chatted eagerly as she walked.

Bridgette was spending lots of time with the younger children, hugging them, kissing them, answering as many questions from them as she could and telling them small stories as they went along.

Gwen, being the loner by nature that she was only spoke to a few people along the way, although she did shake hands with quite a few of those people along the route. A group of Almanian Goths who had came out actually cheered the loudest when they saw that a Goth was one of the Keepers and the Energy Keeper at that.

When they reached the infamous large, imposing laser gates of the Presidential Headquarters, the guard on the inside, dressed in the usual black suit waved them in as he cast a spell on the lock to let them in and he shook hands with each of them as they passed.

Even as they walked along the corridors, various ranks of officials and other employees there stopped to greet them.

Finally they reached the shiny black door with a silver handle that lead to the President's office.

* * *

"Welcome, welcome new Keepers!"

President Tavares, seated in his chair, greeted them eagerly as the Keepers took in their new surroundings with great fascination. Nasira and their predecessors sat in various seats in one corner.

The girls noted that there were seven empty seats in the room. Six they could understand, but the seventh, which was right beside President Tavares' desk, was vacant.

"I am President Johan Tavares." He introduced himself smiling warmly at them and shaking their hands.

"In case you're wondering who the extra seat is for, that's for Vice President Dagnall. She will be here soon. She's just taking care of the details for refreshments when we're all done here before you all head out to the Mora region for your first training session." He explained.

Just as the Keepers took their seats, the door opened behind them.

In stepped a woman with long, straight black hair with a slanted fringe, sharp olive green eyes and pale skin.

She wore a light green skirt suit with a black inside vest and black buttons on the jacket, black heels and silver hoop earrings. They also noticed a metallic bracelet with a strange orange gem on it around her right wrist.

"Serafina! Finally ready to join the party?" he asked.

"Yes indeed, Johan!" she smiled warmly at the Keepers, taking the time to shake each of their hands, lingering at Heather's especially.

As she did so, the same unpleasant feeling spread through each of them. Their senses were telling them that this woman was a danger but she was Vice President of Alma...

She wouldn't be a danger_, right_?

"Serafina Dagnall, Vice President of Alma, Shape-Shifter extraordinaire!" she said, sitting in her chair.

"What kind of Shape-Shifter are you?" Bridgette asked.

"I'm a Human Shape-Shifter!" Serafina answered.

"The rarest of the three Shape-Shifting classes!" President Tavares added. "The only other person I know personally with the same Shape-Shifter abilities is Jamilah, Erendor's Immortal. You will probably know this already, but it's extremely rare!"

"Only powers rarer than that are yours, Keepers!" Serafina said smiling. "No one can have your type of powers except you! And we Human Shape-Shifters cannot change into you either! Well, possibly Jamilah, but I know no other Shifters of my power level that can change into a Keeper..."

"What happens if you try?" Izzy asked.

"_This._"

Serafina's skin started to stretch and bend as if made of rubber. Her eyes became the same shade of green that Izzy's was, her hair started to grow to Izzy's length but...

Her appearance immediately snapped back to what it was before.

Serafina shook her head and sat down. "It also gives a killer headache..." she said, rubbing her forehead and moaning.

"It's not a good idea for me to try and change into you. If I persisted with it, I could have possibly drained myself of my powers or driven myself nuts..." Serafina said, shaking her head. "I also can't change into any of the Immortals..."

"So." President Tavares said, clasping his hands together. "What's it been like for you so far now that you've discovered your powers?"

"Okay, I guess." Gwen said, shrugging.

"Handy." Bridgette said, remembering when she fell down the stairs and healed the wound that resulted.

"FUN!" Izzy shrieked.

"Fascinating..." Heather said, examining her nails.

"Confusing..." Lindsay said scratching her head, puzzled. "I'll be glad when this training thing starts because there's so much I still don't understand!"

"This is what your training and Elemental Books are for!" Akari said, smiling.

"So, girls. What do you say we go get us some food and then meet back up outside for your training? I'll take you all there since Nasira has to stay behind to help President Tavares and Vice President Dagnall with matters of state. In fact from now on, I'll mostly be the one to come for you, not her." Hasim said.

"Okay!" Lindsay said, marching after him and the Old Keepers.

"Might as well." Gwen shrugged.

* * *

Hasim laughed. "Well _that_ was a party I'll never forget!" he said, as they gathered outside the gate of the President's headquarters.

"Senator Morag was actually dancing like there's no tomorrow!" Aideen giggled.

"Never thought I'd see that day..." Deanna said, shaking her head and muttering.

"It was pretty great." Bridgette laughed. "Geoff would have had a ball there!"

"Who is this 'Geoff' of which you speak?" Hasim asked.

"My wonderful boyfriend." Bridgette said, smiling and blushing slightly.

"Ah, love. It is such a wonderful feeling. I remember when I first met Nasira." He sighed, before waving his staff and teleporting them all to the Mora region.

* * *

The New Keepers were amazed at their new surroundings once they arrived in the Mora region. It looked simply beautiful.

In the distance there was a volcano, which was dormant. "_It will remain that way until we get up there, got that, Izzy?_" Aideen admonished her successor, who immediately 'aww'ed and pouted.

On another side there was a forested area with plenty of the Earth Element for Heather and Deanna to work with. "Not going to wimp out, are you?' Deanna asked Heather, almost menacingly. "_If you think I'm going to let you scare me, you're wrong._" Heather replied confidently.

There was also a large mountain looming in the distance on top of which Lindsay and Akari would be training together.

"Apparently the air's better up there." Akari explained. "At least that's what Janessa said!" she continued, rolling her eyes. "Feels the same down here to me!" she muttered.

Bridgette and Marissa were to be working near the beach.

"Oh my," Bridgette said, gazing longingly at it. "I've never seen such a beautiful beach! When can we go surfing?" she asked Marissa.

"As soon as you can make objects out of ice and learnt the basics, then maybe we'll learn to surf using Water Magic, which I can assure you is much more fun!" Marissa answered, smiling.

"As for us, Gwen, we'll be working on a flat stretch of land far behind the volcano." Vesta said.

"But first, we must all work together to earn the best part of being a Keeper." Vesta said.

The Keepers got excited.

"And what would that be?" Izzy asked excitedly.

"Transforming!" Hasim exclaimed. "Have you already forgotten that you can grow wings along with your new outfits and fly!" he asked.

"But how?" Lindsay asked.

"A fairy of your caliber doesn't to know how, she just does it, that's all." Akari answered.

"That makes no sense!" Heather exclaimed.

"On the contrary, it makes a lot of sense, Earth Keeper." Hasim answered. "There is no particular method to transforming."

Heather raised an eyebrow.

"But one would think that there's a method to just growing wings and flying!" Gwen exclaimed.

"Oh, there is! But only for the first transformation. After that, you can transform freely without any effort!" Hasim clarified.

"So how do we do it Hasim?" Bridgette asked.

"Simple." Vesta stepped in front of the group. "You must think of the happiest memories of your life. Focus on nothing else. Channel the energy and the magic that flows through you at the thought of those memories. And the rest will take care of itself." She said, smiling.

The five Keepers stepped aside and did as they were told to do.

* * *

_Bridgette was concentrating really hard on the memory where she first learnt to surf; when her father was alive and both he and her mother were teaching her, when she had her first pet; a ginger kitten named Leah, volunteering at her local animal shelter, dating Geoff...Blue light began to engulf her._

_Izzy was concentrating on the memory of when she first defeated Chef in one of their epic battles. The euphoria she felt at beating down the man that annoyed her so; the thrill whenever she managed to evade the RCMP/aliens, dating Owen... Red light engulfed her._

_Heather thought of when she finally remade herself from being a pimply, brace-faced, fat preteen to the gorgeous body she had today, when her tactics in the school election won her the School Presidency, if only to spite her school rivals, winning her first catfight, the moments in Total Drama Island when she humiliated all her enemies... Green light engulfed her._

_Lindsay imagined the first time her father bought her a pony. A real, light brown pony with a white mane with pretty pink bows in it and tail. When she had her pretty princess sweet sixteen birthday party where she and all her friends came in outfits fit for royalty, meeting and becoming best friends with Betty, dating Taylor, the good time she and Betty had in Paris... White light surrounded her._

_Gwen imagined the fun times she had with her mother when she was a small child, her little brother being born and the fun times she had with him; later in life when she got over the fact that their father had left, meeting Marilyn, Reaper and Pixie Corpse and their fun times together wrecking preps' parties, making friends in the Total Drama series, the brief time she had with Trent, the new thrill that filled her as she thought of Duncan... She began to glow silver._

* * *

When all five emerged from the transformation, they were hovering slightly above the ground checking out their new outfits, wings and in some cases, the changes to their hair.

Bridgette's hair was now out of its ponytail. She wore a dark blue tube-top dress with a navy-blue midriff, light blue gloves, matching platform ankle boots and the outfit was completed by a sky blue choker. Her wings were butterfly-shaped, with sky blue outlining and aquamarine colouring in the middles.

Izzy wore a red high-necked halter top dress with the neck and the hem, which was jagged orange. She also wore red fingerless gloves with orange jagged edges and matching leggings. Her wings were a pale orange and had several sharp points in them. Her hair looked even wilder and there were now two bright red streaks at the front of her already brightly coloured hair.

Heather wore a dark green mini-kimono with a light green neckline and that light green stripe continued down the front to the hem. A sea green sash was around her waist and she wore shoulder-length mint green fingerless gloves. Her hair was long once again, reaching inches below her waist. The heels she wore before were now dark brown and her wings resembled simple leaves.

Lindsay wore a pleated white knee-length dress with short, layered ruffled sleeves, off-white shoulder-length fingerless gloves and knee-high low-heeled white boots. Her hair was pulled into pigtails with darker blonde bangs. Her wings resembled transparent, dragonfly wings.

Gwen wore an off-the-shoulder black Lolita-style dress with the top and bottom of the sleeves silver-coloured, a silver stripe going down the front and stopping at her waist with black laces criss-crossing over it and a silver two-layered hem. Her black gloves went halfway up her forearms with a silver bracelet at the wrist and silver trimming at the ends. Her shoes were black flats with matching ankle bracelets. Her wings were small and diamond shaped and the Silver Star necklace, instead of having the black choker, had a silver chain-link attaching it to her neck.

* * *

"Oh my gosh! My outfit is amazing!" Lindsay squealed, jumping up and down while trying to check out her wings at the same time.

"Not bad, not bad at all!" Gwen mused. "At least it's not frilly..."

"Simple, but okay." Heather said of her outfit.

"It's actually pretty nice! If Geoff saw me in this, he'd drool!" Bridgette said, giggling.

"_It's absolutely wild! Just like Izzy! Izzy loves her new outfit!_" Izzy cackled madly.

"Well that's all nice and good, but you need to proceed to your training areas." Hasim said.

"He is right. Let's go!" Vesta used a trail of silver energy to propel herself through the sky towards their training spot and Gwen immediately took off behind her.

The other four younger Keepers looked after them in amazement. "If that's diminished powers, I sure wouldn't like to be someone up in a fight against them when they were the current Keepers..." Heather shuddered. The others nodded vigorously.

Marissa created a bridge of ice and as she slid across it, it disappeared behind her. Bridgette flew close behind.

Aideen turned herself into flame and propelled herself towards the volcano and when Izzy took off behind her, she shrieked and laughed madly along the way, saying: "_COOL! I WANNA TURN MYSELF INTO FIRE TOO! ARE YOU GOING TO TEACH ME THAT!_"

Deanna stomped on the ground and a large boulder rose out of the ground, creating a large crater in the ground and flipped easily onto it. "Come on, Heather! Radcliffe won't be waiting on you!" She yelled from up in the air. Heather growled and took off after her, muttering.

Akari simply floated in mid-air and beckoned to Lindsay to follow her which she did, laughing in joy and squealing all the way. "I love flying!" she said. "So do I!" Akari smiled at her.

* * *

_Little did the Keepers, past and present, or anyone in Alma's elite inner circle realize that their rank had been infiltrated, that Radcliffe's spy had reported back to him in his castle with the news that the Keepers had begun their training in the Mora region..._

The figure stepped into the room in a dark green cloak. Radcliffe stood up to greet the new arrival.

"So, you are in agreement with the plans?" he asked.

"Why shouldn't I be? The last Keepers killed my mother in their battle! Taking down this set will only be fun for me! Plus, I already agreed. I keep my word, Radcliffe, you know that!" the figure said in a female voice.

"I thought so... _Serafina_. Or should I say, _**Alana!**_" he cackled.

The figure removed her cloak to reveal that indeed, Alma's own Vice-President, Serafina Dagnall was beneath the cloak.

"Suckers!" Alana muttered under her breath as she morphed back into her original form.

"And to think, they didn't think to check your full range of powers before you applied to the government service!" he laughed.

"It's their own error not to check that I have magic powers in addition to my Shape-Shifting abilities!" Alana smirked.

"Pity that a simple Deception Spell will be their downfall..." Radcliffe said thoughtfully before the two burst out into evil laughter...


	9. Training Begins Part 1

_**Hey everyone! It's hard to believe that it's been a month since I last updated! This chapter is one of the longer ones, I hope it makes up for the wait!**_

**Disclaimer:** See first chapter.

* * *

On the flat stretch of land behind the volcano, Vesta was beginning to tell Gwen the basics of being the Energy Keeper.

"It may not seem like it, but Electrical Energy is much easier to manage than the other kinds." She started.

Gwen raised an eyebrow.

"It is! You try drawing energy from your surroundings and putting it into energy blasts!" Vesta exclaimed.

"But today, we're going to start with the defensive magic that energy magic provides. One of the first manifestations of your energy powers was with that shield, right?" Vesta asked.

Gwen nodded.

"Well then, you'll have to learn how to call on that shield voluntarily. It can come in very useful at times. Now, hold your hands out in front of you and let the energy flow through you and just imagine the shield appearing."

Gwen did as she was asked, but instead of the effect she desired, large blades of silver energy emerged from her hands, knocking Vesta right off her feet.

"Oops..." Gwen said, clutching her face in worry, flew over to the older female. "Are you okay? What happened? I'm sorry!"

"Gwen, Gwen, calm down! I'm fine!" Vesta said, getting up and brushing herself off.

"Things like this _always_ happen in the first few sessions of training! Goodness knows I had quite a few accidents with Alice myself!" Vesta said, chuckling.

Gwen still looked anxious though.

"Relax! Now let's try that again. Just put a little less power into it this time." Vesta instructed.

Gwen did it again and was successful this time in creating a large, transparent, yet silvery dome over herself.

"Good job! _Now think fast!_" Vesta said, quickly firing off blasts of silver energy balls at the Goth.

Gwen slid back slightly along with the shield, but it never showed signs of giving way.

"Excellent! You seem to be a quick learner! Now, shall we move on to those energy blades again?" Vesta asked.

Gwen nodded. "Good! You just need to let the power go to your- what hand do you use more?"

"I use my right hand, Vesta." Gwen answered.

"Yes. Now, you need to let the energy flow to your right hand and just slash it through the air, like this!" Vesta slashed her hand in both a horizontal and a vertical direction and horizontal and vertical blades of energy emerged respectively.

"Okay..." Gwen imitated her predecessor's movements, but only managed to produce small blades, nothing like what she had done before.

"Try a broader movement. Increase the angle that you move your hand at. You would decrease it to make the blades smaller." Vesta advised her, coming up behind her successor to put her arm in the right position.

Gwen tried again and produced larger blades of energy.

"YES!" she twirled around into the air and pumped her fist.

Vesta smiled at the Goth's excitement.

"Come back down here so I can teach you how to make energy blasts!" she yelled up at her.

Gwen lowered herself, but did not land.

"Now, cup your hands in front of you and gather up your energy into a large sphere." Vesta instructed her. Gwen stated glowing and the energy started flowing to her hands.

"The energy will flow into your hands. You must shape it and mould it into a sphere in order to control it." Vesta said.

The sphere of energy in Gwen's hands got bigger and bigger until...

A huge flash of silver light covered the area which they were in and it could be seen by the other Keepers.

When it cleared, Vesta's hair went straight up into the air and she herself was standing there with a shell-shocked expression on her face.

"Well, that was a pretty good blast..." she said, straightening out her hair.

"I guess so..." Gwen said. "Was it supposed to have that much power behind it though?"

"It doesn't usually, but that can also be a good thing. As Mella, a previous Energy Keeper once wrote in our Elemental Book, 'That surge of power can come in handy if you need to take out a large target!' or as I wrote in it myself, _a more powerful_ target!" Vesta replied.

"But how do I moderate it in case I don't need such a powerful blast? I mean, suppose I only wanted it for... light for example. Couldn't I just make a smaller sphere?" Gwen asked.

"Yes, it is possible. Just use one hand to make a sphere, like this..." Vesta held up her right hand which immediately began to glow and a small orb of light formed in her palm.

Gwen tried the same movement and was successful.

"That was brilliant, Gwen!" Vesta clapped.

"Thanks, Vesta!" Gwen replied, smiling slightly.

"Now that we've covered the basics of that, let's move on to electricity manipulation, shall we? We can practice the more difficult aspects of energy manipulation later. Now, you've already said that you can make electricity out of thin air, right?"

Gwen nodded.

Vesta looked strange for a moment before beginning to speak. "Well, that is... _incredible_ to say the least. I didn't even know that was in my power range until Alice taught me..." Vesta paused to think while her successor looked at her quizzically.

"_Must be because of the prophesy or something..._" Vesta thought to herself. "_They are the ones that are supposed to beat Radcliffe after all. Their powers are stronger than ours were... Even at this point where they are untrained..._"

Vesta shook her head to clear it. "Now, how big a pulse can you make?"

Gwen demonstrated by covering her arm in a wave of electric energy which crackled loudly as it spread.

"Now, aim it for that rock." Vesta said, gesturing towards an extremely large boulder looming behind them.

Gwen turned around, aimed a bolt of lightning at the boulder Vesta had indicated and let it loose.

It went straight through the boulder leaving a large, gaping hole in the centre of it.

"Brilliant Gwen, absolutely brilliant!" Vesta clapped.

"Thanks."

"No problem at all!" Vesta said.

"Well, I think that that we should cover more of the basics of being the Energy Keeper after a break, don't you?" she asked her successor, who immediately nodded, wiping her eyebrow.

"We will work on the more complicated things like portals and magic spells in another session. I try that now after all of that-you still haven't mastered the basics, and I might as well ask you to blow up Alma!" Vesta exclaimed, sitting on a nearby rock and motioning for Gwen to sit beside her.

Gwen raised an eyebrow at this.

"I trained my own daughter Amy and son Alan in magic when they were younger..." Vesta explained.

Gwen raised an eyebrow. "I thought that the Keeper powers weren't hereditary!" Gwen exclaimed.

"Did I say that they were? No I did not. I merely said that my children have magic powers. Not any of the Keeper powers... However, Keeper magic has been known to be passed down from the Keepers to their granddaughters on occasion. For example, do you remember Saveeta, the Keeper of Earth before Deanna?"

Gwen nodded.

"Her grandmother Parvati was the Keeper of Earth before her." Vesta said.

"Really? It must be cool having your own grandmother teaching you such awesome stuff!" Gwen said.

Vesta chuckled. "I don't think it would have been 'cool' for me though. My grandmother and I always used to butt heads. She was even crazier than your little friend, the Fire Keeper Izzy, with the strength of Eva, who I've actually seen break things that I'd never think breakable when I was watching the show to keep up with your lives!" Vesta said, smiling slightly before shuddering, an action which Gwen copied at the thought of someone with Izzy's level of sanity and Eva's strength...

"Anyway, I heard you say that Keeper magic was passed down to their granddaughters occasionally. Has it ever been passed directly to their own daughters?" Gwen asked.

"Nope. Never." Vesta shook her head.

"Keeper magic usually manifests itself fifty to sixty years after the previous Keepers manifest that magic themselves. So you can see how that would work out, if it were our own children." Vesta continued.

"So, what was it like for you when you first became the Energy Keeper?" Gwen asked.

"Oh, I can remember the day I found out like it was yesterday. I was none too pleased when I found out about my powers. I feared that I'd lose serious control and expose us all. That is, until I met Aideen. Her element is the most dangerous. While mine may be the more powerful, hers is the least controllable..."

Gwen nodded to show she understood.

"Now, enough about that. Let's get back to your training!" Vesta said, getting up and stretching.

"Now, _heads up!_" Vesta said, firing a few lightning bolts at Gwen, who quickly flew out of the way.

"Great reflexes!" Vesta complimented.

"Thanks!" Gwen said, grinning down at her.

"We have to work on improving your reaction time though. Get down here!"

As Gwen descended, Vesta began to speak.

"Now here's what we're going to do..."

* * *

Down by the beach, Bridgette and Marissa were going out into the water. Instead of actually going into the water however, Bridgette was flying and skimming her toes on the top of it, did a flip in mid-air with water following her every motion, flew higher and saw Marissa standing not in the water, but on top of it.

"Woah, how do you do that?" Bridgette asked, surprised.

"As Water Keeper, you can do anything you want with the water, including compelling it to let you walk on top of it." Marissa said.

Bridgette nodded.

"Now, I know that you can do basic water movements, so let's start with doing a little more with that. Watch this." Marissa said, her hands beginning to glow blue.

Soon, the water behind Bridgette began to rise and form itself into the shape of an extremely large balloon. It promptly came down on Bridgette, surrounding her and lifting her into the air.

"_Hey!_" she exclaimed in surprise.

"Gives new meaning to your typical water balloon, doesn't it?" Marissa said, smiling up at her as Bridgette was working on getting out of it, moving her arms in a circular motion to create a hole in it.

When she finally landed, she began to try creating a 'new and improved' water balloon herself although she found that she wasn't having as much success as Marissa.

"That is quite fine at this stage. You aren't fully trained. I wouldn't expect great levels of skills like this from you as yet..." Marissa said, reassuringly as Bridgette only succeeded in making one about half her size, before freezing it and then causing it to smash into pieces some of which hit her, sending her straight into the ocean. Marissa dove under to check on her.

"Are you all right?" she said to her.

Bridgette found that she could hear her quite clearly despite their being underwater. She also realized that she didn't have to hold her breath. She looked to Marissa for answers.

"Isn't it obvious by now? Our powers allow us to become one with the water, meaning that it cannot restrict us in any way! One thing is for sure though. Water Keepers cannot die by way of drowning!" She answered, before swimming to the surface, Bridgette doing the same.

"Well, that was refreshing!" Bridgette remarked. Marissa nodded in agreement.

"Next, we should cover-" Marissa started as she started to move a swirl of water around her.

"- water whips." She said, forming it into the shape of one and sending it at Bridgette, who barely flew out of the way to avoid it.

"I must compliment you on your reflexes there, Bridgette. You do seem to have a fairly good reaction time. However we really must work on it more since it almost got you..."

"Now, you must try to form one and get it to hit me. I warn you though, I might be old, but my reflexes are still as sharp as ever!" Marissa said, chuckling.

Bridgette raised her arms and two swirls of water followed their movement. She moved them sharply- and the water fell right back into the sea.

Marissa sighed. "You cannot make the movements so jerky or you will lose control of whatever you were trying to do!" She said, repeating the procedure and telling her to watch her more carefully than the last time.

"Try again and remember what I told you about movement."

She nodded and began to repeat Marissa's motions exactly as she had seen them.

Marissa nodded. "Very good. You are doing better. Now try wrapping it around that tree on the beach." She said, pointing to a palm tree halfway up on the shore.

Bridgette scrunched up her face in concentration as she flung her hand forward, aiming the water that flowed her motion towards the tree.

It formed a lasso in mid-air and wrapped itself around the middle of the trunk.

"Great!" Marissa said, cheering. "Try freezing it now!" Bridgette clenched her fist and a wave of cold spread through the water whip that she was still gripping tightly, freezing it as it went.

However, instead of freezing just the whip as she had intended, it froze the entire tree. When Bridgette broke her concentration in shock, the tree shattered into pieces, which she watched, wide-eyed.

"Did I just do that?" Bridgette asked, surprised.

"Yes, yes you did." Marissa answered, chuckling.

"That isn't bad, you know. Be glad that you did not cause a snowstorm!" she commented.

"A snowstorm on the beach? That would be extremely... Strange..." Bridgette said, nodding in agreement.

"Indeed it is. _Like your power level..._" Marissa thought.

"Anyway, let's move on. You see all this water around you?" Marissa asked, gesturing behind her.

"Yes..." Bridgette said, confused.

"You can also control massive amounts of it. It takes considerable amounts of your energy yes, but it can be done. Not wise to do it too often though. Use it _only when you have to_." Marissa then turned towards it, paused for a moment and breathed in deeply before beginning to move her arms in a swaying movement.

Slowly the water further out to sea began to move upwards in a tidal wave.

"That's so awesome!" Bridgette exclaimed as it got bigger.

"Now I believe that you wanted to learn how to surf with your water magic, correct?" Marissa said.

"Oh goodness, yes!" Bridgette exclaimed happily.

"Well then, why don't you rise up some of the water and freeze it like I am doing and make an ice surfboard?" As she said this, she was indeed making a surfboard-shaped block of ice.

Bridgette did the same and flew towards the wave with hers in her hand while Marissa swam with hers floating above her.

When they reached it, they immediately climbed on their respective surfboards and surfed for a while before Marissa spoke again.

"Try this hun! See if you can keep up with me!" Marissa said, propelling herself into the air with the water beneath her.

"I'm sure I can Marissa!" Bridgette yelled up as she repeated what Marissa had shown her.

Together they raced towards the shore on their waves, Marissa narrowly beating out her successor.

"That was good! You almost beat me! _Almost_ being the key word here." She said, before making a beach chair out of magic and plopping into it.

She waved an arm and a second chair appeared.

"Sit. But do not de-transform." She said, gesturing to the chair.

Bridgette sat.

"We'll take a little break before we move on. Let's talk for a bit shall we?" Marissa said.

"Well, how are you finding the Keeper experience so far? Have you had any problems keeping your powers under wraps at Playa Des Losers?" she asked.

"No, none for me at least. It's Izzy I'm kinda scared of!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"_Isn't everyone?_" Marissa muttered.

"She has always liked fooling around with fire and now that she has fire-based powers, it's going to be one wild ride..." she continued, shaking her head.

"I see. Maybe you, Alyssa and Aideen can spell some sanity into her." Marissa commented.

"Don't you mean knock some sense into her?" Bridgette asked.

"No. You and Alyssa have Empathy powers, remember? Hers are a lot stronger than yours though. She'll be able to help you with that aspect of you powers, unlike me. I was never an Empath. As for Aideen, she _is_ her predecessor and they should share a common understanding of their powers, plus the fact that Aideen is a pretty calm individual. Let's hope some of that rubs off on your crazy little friend. " Marissa answered.

"What extra powers did you have?" Bridgette asked.

"Multiplying, Puppetry and Mind-Reading." Her predecessor answered.

"Puppetry?"

"Yep. It is kind of related to our Water Magic abilities, so it does not really count as an extra ability. Before you ask, how it works is that since the body is made up of mostly water anyway, you could control a person's bodily fluids, blood for example- making them do whatever you want them to basically. It's not like mind control where you completely control their thoughts. You only control their body." Marissa explained.

"In other words, they still have their own thoughts and personality!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"Yes. That and Dehydration are rather tricky parts of Water Magic, so we'll learn that when you have progressed further in your training." Marissa said, getting up and making her chair disappear.

Bridgette, sensing that she should do the same did it.

"So now our little break is over with, let's get back to the water, shall we?" Marissa gestured to it before sprinting off, Bridgette flying close behind her.

* * *

Izzy and Aideen were standing on opposite sides of the volcano.

"Step onto the lava, Izzy." Aideen commanded.

Izzy raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"What do you think I am? _**Crazy?**_" Izzy asked, on.

"_Yes..._" Aideen answered under her breath but Izzy heard her anyway.

"Okay! Then that's good enough for me!" Izzy shrieked, jumping into the volcano, sending some of the lava towards Aideen who quickly flexed her hands and sent it back in, before following.

"**This is cool! Well maybe not cool since we're inside a giant volcano, but it's awesome!**" Izzy squealed happily.

Aideen rolled her eyes before rolling up her sleeves and making a ring out of fire by moving her right hand in a circular motion.

"The reason we're fine in here is because our powers grant us resistance to extreme heat. It won't hurt us." She said, firing the ring to Izzy who immediately caught it and made it disappear.

"Well, that was good. You reflexes are extremely sharp!" Aideen complimented.

"Thanks. Comes from having to fight both aliens and the RCMP on a regular basis..." Izzy said calmly.

Aideen blinked.

"Well then, let's learn how to actually create that fire ring, now shall we?" Aideen said, beginning to form it again, this time more slowly.

Izzy lifted some of the lava out of the volcano slowly and followed Aideen's actions, all the while watching the element she controlled in awe.

"Now, let it go toward that rock!" Aideen exclaimed, pointing towards a looming rock on the edge of the volcano.

Izzy aimed upwards, knocking the rock right off the ground and sending it rolling down the side.

"Not bad..."Aideen mused.

"Now, how about we try a more... precise version of manipulating fire." Aideen said, lighting her pointer finger on fire with a single flick.

"This is easier for when you need a smaller, more manageable version of our element for... say for example... to cut through glass. Or if you have an art project involving wielding metal, there's no longer need for you to purchase a blow torch..." she demonstrated this skill by carving a portrait of Izzy in the walls of the volcano which ended up looking exactly like her.

"That's really some skill there!" Izzy exclaimed as she tried to do it... and ended up sending Aideen flying straight out of the volcano in a fountain of lava.

"Oh, oh... How did I do that?" Izzy asked worriedly as she flew up to check on her predecessor.

"Ouch..." Aideen muttered, rubbing her back, where she had hit against a nearby rock.

"Are you okay Aideen?" Izzy asked, reaching out a hand to help her up.

"_I will be when this is over..._" Aideen thought.

"I'm fine, but let's just stay outside of the volcano for now, huh?" Aideen suggested, mostly for her own safety and the fact that this fiery ("_What a pun!_" Aideen thought.) young lady would probably blow it up if allowed to stay inside...

"Now, fire punches." Aideen said, clenching her fist and covering it in flame. Izzy did the same before Aideen walked to stand beside her.

"See that rock over there?" she said, pointing to yet another huge boulder. Izzy nodded.

"Punch out to it. If you succeed, a fist-shaped blast of fire will shatter that rock into millions of fiery pieces!" Aideen exclaimed.

Izzy tried- only for it to fizzle out before it could reach its target.

"Darn." Izzy said, pouting.

"Try again, Izzy." Aideen said.

Izzy tried and failed again.

She started to get upset.

"Izzy." Aideen said, resting her unignited hand on her shoulder.

"_Calm down_. Working yourself up will not accomplish anything. Watch me and then you can try again." Aideen turned towards another boulder and punched.

A fist-shaped blast of fire headed towards it, shattering it, effectively sending many blasts of rocks which resembled comets through the air.

"Wow..." Izzy was opened-mouthed in awe. Aideen smiled.

"That was the same reaction I had when Emily did that. It was indeed amazing for me too!" she said.

"Try again. It may help if you picture that the rock is someone or something you extremely dislike. Say for example..."

"_I'm totally going to regret this, aren't I?_" Aideen thought.

"... the RCMP?" Aideen asked, before quickly getting out of the way, which was indeed wise as Izzy's face had contorted in fury and she had shrieked: "_YOU'LL NEVER GET ME ALIVE!_" before blasting the rock into even smaller fragments than Aideen had.

"Impressive. You see what a little motivation can do?" Aideen asked, smiling.

"Uh-huh!" Izzy said, flying up and down. Aideen blasted herself up to join her.

"How about we try this? Using fire to propel yourself? If you're flying, it can give you a much needed burst of speed!"

She demonstrated by increasing the amount of flame which surrounded her and propelling herself a few meters away.

Izzy tried it, but she ended up putting too much power into the blast and propelled herself into the distance. Before Aideen could react however, Izzy had bounced back -quite literally- on a ball of flame.

"That was extremely good!" Aideen said aloud. "_It's incredible! She already has an amazing amount of control. Perhaps it has something to do with her previous inclination towards our element even before her powers were activated. But I somehow think not..._" she thought.

"How about we try fire shields now? They come in pretty useful. You'd melt/disintegrate any projectiles coming towards you. Why don't you make something and throw it at me?"

Izzy concentrated on a metallic box she had a Playa Des Losers and summoned it to her and immediately flung it at the older woman.

Aideen quickly put up a fire shield which instantly melted the box before it made impact. Papers which were inside it were charred.

"What was in that box anyway?" Aideen asked curiously.

"Oh. Just some old wanted posters of me..." Izzy said nonchalantly while trying to make a shield of her own.

"And you kept those! You just keep getting weirder and weirder..." Aideen said before conjuring up something of her own- an ugly stone statue.

"What's that supposed to be?" Izzy cocked her head to a side. "Is that a bird?"

"I think it's supposed to be a tiger or something, I don't know..." Aideen shrugged.

"Looks more like Toucan Sam!" Izzy exclaimed as Aideen hurled it towards her.

She succeeded in creating her shield and the statue disintegrated upon impact.

"Wonderful! Simply wonderful!" Aideen exclaimed cheerfully.

"Now before we move on, I hear you have some wild stories to tell. Why don't you share some of them with me?" Aideen asked, sitting on the ground Indian-style.

"Well..." Izzy paused for a moment. No one had ever been this interested in her stories before...

"_**There was the time that I battled aliens. They were really hard to beat, but I did it! I'm really well trained in hand to hand combat and weaponry so they didn't really stand a chance!**_" she exclaimed excitedly.

"You're good at hand-to-hand combat?" Aideen asked.

"Yes! I've been doing it ever since I was a little kid. Mom and Dad felt it would be a great way to release some of my 'pent-up energy'. _I've been a lethal killing machine since the age of five!_ _**Woohoo!**_" Izzy shrieked, flying up and down.

"Well then, we'll just have to put some of that so-called expertise of yours to use in your training! I am also pretty good at that, but Akari is the best of us all. When she was growing up in Japan, she trained in Karate from the experts. Perhaps we can have a group session sometime..." Aideen said thoughtfully.

"Really? You mean that?" Izzy's eyes shone.

"Indeed." Aideen smiled.

"Now let's move onto something I know you'll enjoy. Try not to kill me in the process though..." Aideen said.

"Can't promise that!" Izzy exclaimed.

Aideen sighed. "_Why I had to get the psychopath, I'll never know..._" she thought, shaking her head.

* * *

_**Well there we go! Three of the five Keepers first training sessions over! I hope you enjoyed it! Look out for part 2 where Heather and Lindsay begin their training along with a few other surprises...**_

_**REVIEW! I want 15 reviews if you want another chapter for Christmas!**_


	10. Training Begins Part 2

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

In a nearby forest, Heather and Deanna stood, glaring each other down.

"Ready, pipsqueak?" Deanna said.

Heather frowned. "If I'm ready? I've never been more ready in my whole life!" she said confidently.

"Is that so?" Deanna raised an eyebrow skeptically. "So you may think. Manipulating the Earth element isn't as easy as it may seem. Sure you have learned a few Ferrokinesis tricks, but that is about as little as you can do. You also need to master Agrokinesis and Terrakinesis!" she exclaimed.

Heather raised an eyebrow.

Deanna sighed. "Metal Manipulation, Plant Manipulation and Earth Manipulation..."

"_Okay then..._" Heather said, putting a hand on her hip and rolling her eyes.

"_**You see!**_**? **You do not even know the technical terms for our powers! You claim to be ready, but you are far from it! What are you going to do when the time to fight Radcliffe comes? Stab him with your claws?" Deanna said, annoyed.

"Hey!" Heather exclaimed, holding up a hand and protracting her nails into metal claws as she had done before.

"Yeah, yeah. Nice trick. I had that ability too. They're only good for being meat cleavers if you don't know how to use them in combat properly though!" Deanna insisted.

"So then, teach me what you have to teach me then!" Heather said impatiently. "I can't stand it if there's something to be done and it's not being done!"

"Is that so? Well then, let's start with some basics. The rock fist." Deanna held up her right fist. "Packs a pretty good punch when you're in hand-to-hand combat. Try it!"

Heather imitated Deanna and held up a fist and tried to make it like Deanna's but only succeeded in partly covering it.

Deanna sighed. "Let's do this again Heather. Concentrate! Do not let anything distract you!"

Heather tried again and succeeded in covering her fist a bit more, but still not getting it fully.

"Heather! Keep your mind connected to your element! You cannot slacken up! _Try harder!_" Deanna commanded.

"I'm trying, dammit!" Heather yelled, shaking her fist. As she shook it, it became fully encased in stone.

Heather blinked and then did a double-take at her fist.

Deanna roared with laughter at the look on Heather's face.

"And the time you get it, it was totally by accident!" Deanna laughed even more while Heather was glaring at her all the while.

"Anyway, back to training matters. Now try hitting me with it!" Deanna said.

Heather immediately flew at her and aimed a punch but-

"Ha! Too slow!" Deanna taunted as she dodged.

Heather aimed again. "Can't get me!" Deanna called from the top of a tree, which she had commanded to lift her out of the way.

Heather flew at her and attempted to punch her.

"Ha! You wish!" Deanna yelled as she summoned a boulder and flew off on it.

Heather grew furious. "DAMMIT!" she roared as she punched in front of her.

When she did, the rock came off her hand and went straight at Deanna, who not expecting it, was knocked right off the boulder and plummeted to the ground, only saved by calling upon a nearby vine to swing herself to the ground.

"_Humph!_" Heather landed and looked at Deanna, folding her arms and looking at her expectantly.

"_Beginner's luck!_" Deanna said dismissively.

Heather fumed at this.

"Anyway, moving right along, the rock lift. That is pretty much what you just saw me do."

"What, fall to the ground?" Heather taunted.

"You've got some nerve, girlie. Anyway, you're going to learn how to lift-" Deanna commanded a section of rock beneath her feet to lift up, raising her hands slowly as she did.

"-The rock beneath you. You can either fly on it, if you need to dodge quickly when you're not transformed or you can use it as a projectile which will effectively crush your opponent!" Deanna exclaimed, lifting it higher and with only one hand.

"Here. Catch!" she said, throwing the giant rock at her successor.

Heather immediately grew out her hair long enough to reach out, wrap around the boulder in mid-air and threw it back at her predecessor, who lifted her hand into the air and muttered a spell which covered the rock in a dark green colour and slowed its fall.

" I see your reaction time has improved. You did not react fast enough to attack me the first time, but you manage to turn a defense mechanism into an attack instead! Brilliant!" Deanna clapped.

"Huh?" Heather stood there genuinely puzzled.

Deanna noticed this. "What? If you've done something well, I will tell you so. If not, I will still tell you about it, perhaps even more." Deanna paused. "Now you try lifting some rock. _Without _your hair, please."

Heather concentrated and soon enough, a small boulder lifted itself out of the ground.

"Not bad. It's pretty good for a first try, I shall say that. Perhaps next time you'll be able to lift larger masses."

"Now, let's try some plant manipulation, shall we?" Deanna said.

Heather nodded.

"Very well then. Let's start with the basics. Plenty of vegetation growing around us, is it not?" Deanna gestured to the several flowers, plants and trees which were indeed surrounding them.

"_Yeah..._" Heather said.

"Let's start by helping it grow _a little faster_." Deanna demonstrated by stretching her hand towards a small patch of grass.

Immediately the grass began to grow, not stopping until it brushed her hand.

"Wow." Heather said, amazed for a moment. The she shook her head to clear it.

"Now, you try!" Deanna said, gesturing behind her.

Heather pointed to a small plant nearby and lifting her finger, the plant followed her movement- until it zoomed to a height taller than she was and nearly as tall as the tallest tree in the forest.

Deanna face palmed.

"_Oh boy..._" she muttered as she brought the plant down to a reasonable size.

"Dammit! Why am I making so many mistakes? I cannot afford to make so many mistakes!" Heather said, stomping the ground.

When she did, she caused a minor earthquake.

Heather flew into the air, startled.

"Tremor Fault. Otherwise known as an earthquake. _Get down!_" Deanna called up to her.

"Sure, I knew that!" Heather said, quite unconvincingly.

"_I'm sure you did._" Deanna said sarcastically.

"Try it again. This time keep your mind fully focused on the task at hand. Do not let _anything _break your concentration. No thinking about Total Drama World Tour, no thinking about your little boyfriend Alejandro..."

"**He's-not-my-boyfriend!**" Heather seethed.

"**FOCUS!**" Deanna snapped. Heather went back to what she was doing.

"Imagine it growing." Deanna instructed.

Heather tried again and this time made the surrounding vegetation around her grow to about as tall as she was.

"_Finally!_" Heather exclaimed in triumph, doing a sort of backwards flip while flying.

"Yeah, yeah congratulations on performing a little trick. Big deal." Deanna said.

Heather rolled her eyes at this and reduced the plants around her to their regular size.

"Let's move onto metal manipulation, shall we?" Deanna said, summoning a metal pole out of nowhere.

"You're going to learn how to use your Earth magic to bend a simple piece of metal. No using your enhanced strength, _just your Earth magic!_" Deanna explained.

"I can already do that!" Heather exclaimed.

Deanna snorted. "Yeah, to make nail files. Now I know you like to keep your fancy little English manicure-"

"_French_ manicure!" Heather exclaimed. She couldn't believe her ears! English manicure? _Seriously?_

"Whatever. Point is, no nail file is going to do much damage to dear old Raddy and his pretty powerful servants in a fight. Watch this."

Deanna moved her arms and the pole floated out in front of her. She moved her arm in a circular motion and the metal followed her movement to form a perfect circle.

She immediately clenched her fist and the middle of the ring crunched together. Deanna flung it aside.

"You try!" Deanna said, conjuring up another metal pole and tossing it to her.

This was the first of the things she was taught today that she managed to get correct on the first try.

"Good job! I guess you are more partial to Metal Manipulation as I was to Earth Manipulation! Saveeta herself was more partial to Plant Manipulation. Keep this up and maybe I'll be less harsh on you! _Maybe..._" Deanna said.

"Anyway, as powerful as we are, we need a break from all this." Deanna waved her hand towards the ground and two chairs woven out of grass began to form.

"Sit down and do not de-transform!" Deanna commanded.

Heather immediately sat.

"Tell me, why must you be such a hard-ass?" Deanna quizzed her.

"Who me? Takes one to know one! So are you!" Heather exclaimed indignantly.

"I guess so. You can never let people see any sign of weakness from you, got it?" Deanna said.

"I know that! Do you think I'd be pretty much ruler of my school's social scene and the leader of the popular girls if I let anyone see my weaknesses? Not that I have any of course!" Heather exclaimed.

"_I'm sure you don't._" Deanna said sarcastically. "_Look here._ I may be stubborn sometimes but I know when to admit my mistakes no matter how much I don't like it. I know that I have quite the temper. Even now my temper is less than it normally is because I know what must be done. You are a strong-willed girl Heather. Just do not let your stubbornness get in the way of doing what has to be done! It is not your life alone at stake here. Yours, the other Keepers, your family, friends and the entire world will be doomed if you do not learn to master your powers. You may not like me and frankly I'm not that fond of you either. But it has to be done, so suck it up!" she said to her successor.

Heather signed and got up. "Fine. Break's over. What are we doing next?"

"Now that's what I like to hear!" Deanna exclaimed, smiling slightly.

* * *

Lindsay and Akari were on the top of the mountain they were on, talking.

"Well now that we're up here, let's get started!" Akari said, smiling.

Lindsay merely nodded at this.

"You can already levitate some things, right?" Akari asked.

"Absolutely, Natari!" Lindsay exclaimed excitedly.

Akari face palmed.

"_If she can't remember my name, then how the hell is she going to learn how to control the Air Element?_" she said to herself.

"It's Akari. Anyway, the Air Element: one of the most fun to work with. It is light and free, just like most of the Keepers who have the honour of possessing it." She said, while creating a sphere of said element in her hands and then releasing it, blowing Lindsay back slightly.

"Let's start with something extremely basic- telekinesis. Or a harder to forget for you term, floating. When used on a person it's normally called Levitation though." Akari lifted herself slightly into the air.

"You can levitate yourself- although that isn't necessary since you can grow wings, other people and objects." Akari said, lowering herself.

"Here." Akari summoned a pillow from somewhere.

"Try with this. It's light, so it should be ea-" Akari watched as Lindsay blew the pillow far off into the distance with a gust of wind from her hands.

"Oopsie!" Lindsay said sheepishly.

Akari tsk-tsked.

"Let's try that again." Akari summoned another pillow.

"This time, put a little less power into it." Akari told her.

Lindsay scrunched up her face in concentration but only managed to lift the pillow about six inches into the air.

"_Aww!_" Lindsay whined.

"That's okay Lindsay. Let's try that again. You aren't always bound to get it right the first time. Try again. You did get it lifted up at all, that's something. Let's see if you can get it as high as I did next time." Akari encouraged her.

Lindsay tried again.

"_**Now that's just ridiculous!**_" Akari shrieked as she was hauled upside down into the air, hair whipping around her face.

"Sorry!" Lindsay wailed as she let her predecessor down.

"Calm _down, Akari, calm down. This is only the first day... She's bound to make a few mistakes..._" Akari thought to herself.

"Try this. Move your hands slowly upward and keep them up to maintain the floating of an object. I have the feeling you aren't ready to do it mentally yet..." Akari muttered the last part to herself.

"Let's try it with this..." Akari conjured up...

"_OH MY GOSH! IT'S A PAIR OF GUCCI BOOTS! AND THOSE ARE THE BOOTS I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR AGES!_" Lindsay squealed in delight.

"Curb your excitement, they're mine!" Akari said, before making them disappear.

"Aww!" Lindsay pouted.

Akari conjured up another pillow; however it was a bit larger than the first.

"Imagine that this pillow is that pair of Gucci boots that you wanted so much. You want to make them come to you. Now put all your effort into it..." Akari encouraged Lindsay in the tone of voice that would imply that she was talking to a small child.

Lindsay held up her arms, concentrated as hard as she could...

"Drat!" she exclaimed as the pillow fell about halfway between the pair.

"_Hmm... How can I make this work? How can I get her to pick this up faster? Oh, wait, I have an idea!_" Akari thought.

"Imagine that there's a large, icky, gooey, nasty puddle of mud separating you and the shoes. What do yo..." Akari trailed off as the pillow zoomed towards her successor, knocking her over the side of the mountain.

"_I can't believe she let a __**pillow**__ bowl her over. I can see how these training sessions are going to be..._"

"I'm okay!" Lindsay called out. Akari finally peeked over the side of the mountain and saw that Lindsay was flying up from nearly the bottom, floating the pillow above her as she went.

"_And she went that far too._" Akari face palmed.

"Alright Lindsay. Perhaps we should move on..." Akari floated the pillow back to her and made it disappear.

"Invisibility. Now, you can already do this to some extent, however it mostly comes involuntarily, therefore you need to learn how to control it. Can't have you going invisible around your non-magical friends and revealing you secret to the world, now can we?" Akari said.

"No we can't, Natari!" Lindsay nodded her head in agreement.

Akari chose to ignore Lindsay getting her name wrong again.

"Try making one body part invisible at a time. We'll start small." Akari held up her index finger and made it invisible.

Lindsay oohed.

"Your turn!" Akari gestured to her.

This was the first thing she succeeded at the first try.

"Yay me!" she squealed flying up and down in excitement.

Akari smiled at her glee.

"And now the whole hand!" Lindsay waved her hand and it became invisible.

"Brilliant! Brilliant!" Akari clapped.

"_**Finally**__ I'm getting somewhere!_" she thought.

Lindsay learning to become invisible bit by bit progressed until she was entirely invisible.

"Success!" Akari clapped after being fully unable to see her successor.

"Let's try air spheres now!" Akari said.

Akari raised her arms and as soon as she did, a gust of wind came out of nowhere, surrounding her, whipping her hair around her face.

She lowered her arms and held them out in front of her and shaped the air into a small sphere, which she immediately tossed at Lindsay who caught it.

"You should try it, Lindsay!" Akari said.

Lindsay tried- and only managed to create a small breeze.

"That is to be expected. I wasn't all that great at it either." Akari said.

"One more try and we'll take a break, okay?" Akari asked.

Lindsay nodded.

"Ready? One, two, three... **go!**" Akari said.

Lindsay followed Akari's motions and managed to create something larger, but not quite what Akari had done.

"Well then. Let's pause for a while shall we?" Akari said, levitating herself down to a ledge that she could sit on, Lindsay flying close behind her.

"So, you're really into fashion, huh?" Akari asked.

"Yeah!" Lindsay answered.

"Who's your favourite shoe designer? I personally prefer Manolos!" Akari said, smiling at the thought of her favourite pair of shoes back home.

"Really? Me too!" Lindsay squealed in excitement.

"Well, that's something we have in common then! What are things like for you at home? Which part of Canada do you live?" Akari asked her.

"I live in a wealthy neighborhood in Ottawa. My mom owns one of the fanciest restaurants in Canada, my dad's a pretty successful businessman and my older sisters are all away at university. We all get along swell!" Lindsay smiled.

"Sounds like you lead a charmed life, Lindsay." Akari said. "Have you lived there all your life there?"

Lindsay nodded.

"Lucky. When I was younger, I lived in five different countries- other than my native one. China, Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea and of course, Canada. This reminds me. I should visit Japan again soon!"

"Cool! You could speak all those languages before you got that omn-omni-omnalangua thingy?" Lindsay asked.

"Omnilingualism, Lindsay. And yes, I was fluent in not only my native language of Japanese, but also Chinese, Thai, Malay, Korean and English on my own before I had that ability." Akari answered.

"Anyway, enough of the chit-chat now. We are moving on!" Akari said, levitating back to the top of the mountain.

* * *

All five of the Keepers and their predecessors had finished training and were now going back to the point where they had split up earlier.

However as they were far away in the distance they could see flashes of light in the distance- one orange brown and one a sunshine yellow.

"_What the hell is that?_" they all thought.

As they neared that point they noticed Hasim dueling with a man, whose back was turned to them.

When he heard them coming he turned around and they could see a tall, tan, lean man with long black hair with red streaks tied in a ponytail and narrow light green eyes wearing a black dress shirt and black pants looking right at them.

"Well, well, well, Hasim. These are the new Keepers." He smiled mischievously. "I'm so glad to meet you in person!" he said starting towards them.

"Oh no you don't!" Hasim said, covering him in a beam of yellow light and teleporting him farther away from them.

"Who the hell was that?" Heather asked.

"That, my dear was Radcliffe." Deanna answered.

The girls gasped.

"What is **he** doing here!" Gwen asked in surprise.

"Can't a fellow make a visit to the Mora region?" his voice came from behind her.

"Oh crap." The Keepers flew out of the way to avoid an incoming spell.

"How dare you, you creep!" Deanna said, flinging the largest boulder she could at him.

Radcliffe simply waved his staff and made it disappear.

"Oh please, that's pathetic." He taunted.

Deanna fumed.

Aideen waved a hand and a flaming dragon appeared and rushed towards him. Another wave of his staff and it disappeared just as the boulder did.

"Still pathetic." He said nonchalantly.

Now Aideen fumed quite literally.

"You are no longer welcome here Radcliffe. Leave." Hasim said in a tone which was quite unlike him.

"Very well then Hasim. All I have to say to you girls is..." he gestured to the current Keepers with his staff.

"_...watch who you trust..._" And with that, he fired a parting shot at them and disappeared, an evil smile on his face.

There was stunned silence for a few moments after his disappearance.

"Well then. You girls have met him..." Vesta started.

"I wish I hadn't!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"_Don't we all?_" Marissa muttered under her breath.

"I think we should get you girls back to where you belong now. I will have to make a report of what happened to the other Immortals." Hasim said, quite seriously.

"I quite agree." Vesta said. "We can go back to Saurian and take the teleporters in the center of the city back home. Get them out of here of first!"

Hasim nodded.

"Go." He told the Old Keepers.

They nodded and were soon using their various elements to transport themselves back to Saurian.

"Well, let's go, shall we?" Hasim gestured to a beam of yellow light he had just conjured up with his staff.

They all looked at each other uncertainly before stepping inside.

* * *

Back in the Total Drama Jumbo Jet, a large, looming figure moved around. The figure had been previously frozen like the others, but unlike the others it had not bound him for long.

"_Only Nasira could've done something like this. It can only mean one thing. The newest Keepers are involved in the Total Drama series..._" the figure pondered.

"_In my time with this show I sensed a lot of magic in the air. It is a good thing that Alyssa taught me to keep my feelings in check or I could've exposed them and me somehow. My powers still aren't fully recovered to what they were before Radcliffe attacked my home planet all those centuries ago..._"

"_I have not figured out who they are yet, so how could I possibly help guide them along their magical journey in beating __**that fool?**_" the figure muttered.

"_I must get in touch with Alyssa. She will be able to help me reconnect with the others somehow..._" the figure pulled a medium-sized mirror with an intertwining of ebony and ivory framing it out of seemingly nowhere.

"I sure hope she still has hers..." he said as he muttered a few spell words holding his hand above the glass.

His reflection in it suddenly twisted and contorted and changed to reveal a pale yellow room with some whimsical furniture in it. Alyssa's voice could be heard although she had not appeared yet.

Then suddenly, a _very_ shocked Alyssa appeared in front of it.

"This mirror hasn't been used in ages! I wonder who..." she trailed off and grew wide-eyed as she saw who was reflected back at her.

"_SAMUEL? What the… I certainly- but aren't you dead?_" she said, obviously flustered.

"Well, it _**is**_ rather difficult to kill an Immortal..." Samuel chuckled slightly.

"Well, I mean- _what?_" Alyssa said, still shocked.

"After Radcliffe attacked Zenith in order to destroy possible allies to help Ichigo, Madeline, Amora, Marjani and Ana defeat him, it was said I disappeared, wasn't it?" he asked.

Alyssa nodded.

"I lost my magic powers for centuries. I was weak, unable to do anything except watch the centuries fly by; watch Earth's history being made. I knew what Radcliffe had done; refugees coming to Earth from other planets, even if it had been stripped of its magical powers... I could do nothing, at least until now..." he shook his said sadly.

Alyssa smiled weakly. "I believe you Sammy, but how do we tell the others that a man who disappeared for over 9 centuries has suddenly reappeared? And you've changed quite a bit! I could only tell it was you because of my powers allow me to read magical auras and the fact that none of the other Immortals has their Mirror anymore... "

"Well, losing your powers for centuries will do that to you." He said dryly.

"I suppose it would. How do you propose we tell the others that Zenith's Immortal has returned?" Alyssa questioned him.

"I have an idea. How soon can I come over to Wispera and how soon can you get the others there?" he questioned her.

"Certainly not today! The newest Keepers are out training..." she answered.

"Gives me a little more time then!" he exclaimed.

"It's a lot to take in for anyone! Plus I doubt the fact that Nasira will believe that you're back if it just comes from me alone. You know she and I aren't on the best terms..." she frowned.

"Even after all this time, your personalities still clash." He commented. Alyssa nodded.

"Now let's get to work. The sooner we reveal you're back, the sooner we can get to helping the Keepers' chances of kicking Radcliffe's ass for good!" Alyssa said.

There was a sound of people moving around outside the compartment where the figure was, who immediately shushed Alyssa and went to look to see who it was.

Peeking out into first class, he saw Gwen and Heather returning with Hasim going to take their places.

He raised an eyebrow when he noticed Gwen with the Silver Star necklace on and Heather making yet another nail file for herself after snapping a piece of metal off somewhere in Economy Class.

"Well, I _did_ lose my nail file in London..." he heard her say.

"_You think of a nail file after you just meet pretty much the worst villain of all history. I can see how great you are going to be at this job..._" Gwen snapped mentally.

Heather ignored her and proceeded to continue filing her nails.

The figure immediately ran to somewhere where he would not be seen and took back out the mirror.

"Oh, so Heather and Gwen are the Earth and Energy Keepers! _Now tell me quickly, who are the others?_" he said urgently.

"Izzy is the Fire Keeper, Bridgette is the Water Keeper and Lindsay is the Air Keeper!"Alyssa said.

"_Oh good Lord! __**Izzy**__ as the __**Fire**__ Keeper? We're all doomed!_" the figure shuddered.

"I must go. They are about to unfreeze time!" the figure told the mirror before pocketing it.

"Good luck! I will try to get a meeting with the others as soon as possible!" Alyssa's voice could be heard from his pocket.

He nodded as he quickly dashed inside the Confessional, waiting for time to resume so he could go back to his spot. He was lucky that none of them realized that he wasn't where they had left him...

* * *

_**Review!**_


	11. Discussions

**Disclaimer: **See first chapter.

* * *

In the basement of Alyssa's home, there was a large, round mahogany table set up with six matching chairs around it. The walls were dark pink with dark yellow stripes.

"Where she gets this colour scheme from, I'll never know." Marcus muttered.

Nasira looked around at the walls and shuddered. "I quite agree." She said. "By the way, where could Alyssa possibly be? She's late to a meeting _in her own house!_"

"I wish I could tell you. When she suggested we have the meeting here she seemed extremely excited..." Jamilah said.

"Like she normally is..." Marcus muttered in reply.

"Not as much as the Nadiri princess is!" Jamilah replied.

"That she is." Hasim said, smiling.

"The Fire Keeper Izzy is the worst..." Marcus added.

Everyone nodded vigorously to this.

"Seriously though. Where is she?" Nasira asked, tapping her fingers on the table impatiently.

"HERE I AM!" Alyssa's voice shouted as she pushed the doors wide open and strode in, beaming.

Marcus jumped, spilling the glass of water he had all over himself.

"Great. Well that is just great." He grumbled.

"Oh hush, Marcus!" Alyssa said, still smiling reaching into a nearby cupboard and handing him a towel.

"Why are you smiling?" Nasira asked suspiciously. "The issue we are to discuss here is no laughing matter!"

"Oh I know that Radcliffe showing up in Mora isn't a laughing matter. It's just that I have some great news!" Alyssa exclaimed.

Marcus rolled his eyes.

"Well then, don't keep us waiting!" Hasim said, leaning back into his chair.

"_Come on in!_" Alyssa roared.

The doors opened once again and in strode Samuel, wearing some olive green robes, a matching crown-style kufi and khaki pants.

Marcus did a double take, Jamilah choked on her water and Nasira sat there, just looking at him.

Hasim was the first to walk over to him and give him a tough handshake.

"Long time no see, my friend." He said warmly as Alyssa took her place at the table watching proudly.

"How do we know that it is indeed him, Hasim?" Nasira asked skeptically.

"I remember details. Photographic memory, remember? Despite all these years I remember what he looked like then. He looks remarkably different now, mind you but still the same in some areas." Hasim remarked.

"Plus the fact that no ordinary Shifter can change into an Immortal!" Jamilah added, once she had recovered.

"And there is the fact that I can read emotional auras and despite the fact that it has changed quite a lot over the centuries, his aura still remains the same at the very core and this is how I recognized him as who he was even after all this time..." Alyssa said.

"You all are right, I suppose. Welcome back to the fold Samuel. I have just one question though. Where were you all these years? Why have you now rejoined us?" Nasira asked as both Samuel and Hasim took their seats, Samuel sitting beside Alyssa.

"As I told Alyssa yesterday, my powers were drained. I had no way of contacting you, no way of getting to any of the planets to meet you, nothing... My powers are almost fully recovered now, so I'm ready to come back and help the Keepers with their job!" he answered.

"Strange how willing you are to help them now, yet you're willing to torture them for a living... How is being that pathetic mortal Chris McLean's lackey for a living anyway?" Marcus asked in a monotone.

Samuel frowned. "I am not his lackey!" he muttered. "Even though he makes the staff do the most ridiculous things, I must admit. I am no ordinary human so he can't treat me as badly as the others..."

"Oh and I wonder- what the hell happened to your hair? You used to have a full head of dreadlocks!" Marcus asked. "I just can't get over seeing you bald!"

Samuel did not give him an answer, but merely grumbled.

"I wonder how Chris McLean got that way..." Alyssa wondered.

"That is not our concern." Nasira said. "What is our concern is Radcliffe showing up in Mora yesterday..."

"I would never believe he'd get so bold..." Samuel grumbled.

"You don't know him anymore. He got absolutely evil over the centuries. In fact, after he attacked your planet all those years ago he actually dared to kidnap Ana!" Alyssa said.

"No!" Samuel exclaimed.

"Try also taking away Energy Keeper Nova's senses... Luckily Water Keeper Serena had some strong Healing abilities..." Jamilah said.

"Wha..." Samuel sat up in his chair.

"And his latest attempt with the immediate Former Keepers, the attempted murder of Aideen, the Fire Keeper of that time. He came dangerously close to actually causing her death. She was actually in a coma- in limbo- a precarious position to be in. She was so close to actually dying that _Queen Vasilissa_ wasn't too pleased about the fact that there were actually doctors on Earth that were good enough to help her recover…" Marcus said.

"There were doctors on Earth that could help with magically induced comas?" Samuel asked in surprise. "And Vasillisa was actually displeased that there was one _less _restless soul to keep an eye on?"

"Is she _ever_ pleased about anything?" Alyssa asked, rolling her eyes.

"Well, the Realm of the Dead _is_ under her jurisdiction… " Nasira said.

"But Aideen wasn't actually dead… And Queen Tiana goes to visit her realm fairly often and she doesn't object!" Alyssa said.

"But she doesn't go every day!" Nasira said.

"More than most Necromancers do!" Alyssa said.

"But she doesn't exactly bring back guests..." Hasim pointed out.

"Queen Vasilissa must _love_ that..." Marcus muttered.

"It's not like she can have that many _alive _guests in her realm! Not even we can enter that realm on our own!" Jamilah said. "Survive in it, yes since she can't exactly kill Immortals but we can't get in or out without the assistance of someone with Necromagic!"

"Even I avoid that Realm as much as I can! All those ghosts and undead people..." Marcus shuddered.

"Enough about the laws of Necromagic please!" Nasira said.

"Nasira is right. If we wanted to know about it, we'd go to the Spectran libraries!" Jamilah said.

"Speaking of Spectra, when will the new Keepers go to visit there? I think they may get along well with Tiana the best of all the rulers..." Alyssa said.

"I don't know. I was considering bringing them here to Wispera after their next destination in the contest..." Hasim said.

"Oh let them go there. Tiana will show them a good time while they're there!" Alyssa said, grinning, knowing the type of person the Spectran Queen was. "And they'll have an even better one with me here!"

"Speaking of that, where are they going next in the contest, Samuel?" Jamilah asked him.

"Chris says we're going to Rome." He answered.

"Ah. Rome. It is such an interesting place. Full of history. When was the last time we had an Italian Keeper?" Jamilah asked.

"I believe we had one somewhere around the American Revolution. Remember Flora, the Earth Keeper of that time? She would have been about in her thirties around that event though..." Nasira asked.

"She was such a sweetheart." Hasim said, smiling.

Nasira rolled her eyes. "Only because she brought biscotti for you every time she saw you!" she exclaimed.

"Now there was a person who knew how to appreciate sweet treats!" Hasim said, leaning back in his chair and smiling even more.

Samuel chuckled. "Still the same sweet-toothed guy I knew back in the 12th century! Speaking of which, you wouldn't happen to have any jellybeans on you, would you?" he asked.

"Always!" Hasim said, flicking open the top of his cane and pouring some in Samuel's hands.

"Dude, does your cane have some sort of bottomless jellybean pit in there?" Marcus asked in a monotone.

"Actually, yes! Do you want some?" Hasim asked, offering him some.

"Oh hell. Why not?" Marcus accepted some.

"So, where are _my_ jellybeans?" Alyssa asked.

"And mine?" Jamilah asked.

As he distributed the treats, Nasira watched all of this skeptically.

"What, none for you my dear?" Hasim asked offering the cane to her.

She looked at the smile on his face and then softened.

She even smiled a little as she accepted the jellybeans from her husband.

Alyssa noticed this and smiled to herself.

"_Love is such a wonderful thing._" She thought. "_They are lucky to have found each other..._"

* * *

Back on the Jumbo Jet, since Gwen no longer had training to distract her for the moment, her mind was back on the game- and moreso her fellow players in it.

"_I am so dead!_" she thought. "_Why did I kiss Duncan?_"

"_I'd like to know that too..._" Bridgette interrupted her thoughts.

She jumped.

"_I know you did! I barely had time to watch the episode myself before Hasim came to get us here at Playa Des Losers 2..._" Bridgette said.

"_**When**__ and not if Courtney finds out... you are going to be a goner!_" Bridgette exclaimed.

"_I know!_" Gwen wailed.

"_I could feel that you had some feelings of guilt even before I watched the episode so I know that you regretted something. It's only when I actually did watch that episode I found out why..._" Bridgette commented.

"_I feel sorry for you, but even sorrier for her. Think of how heartbroken she will be! Despite all her faults, she is a friend of mine and she doesn't deserve this!_"

"_Duncan should have thought of it too!_"

"_Hey, it takes __**two**__ to tango! Even though it was him that initiated the kiss, the lying, cheating scumbag! You could have pushed him away but you gave in!_" Bridgette muttered.

"_I'm sorry!_" Gwen wailed.

"_It's her you should apologize to!_" Izzy cut in.

"_Oh no, not you too!_" Gwen exclaimed.

"_How could you be so mean, Greta?" Lindsay added. "I thought Cora was mean, but this..._" Lindsay trailed off.

"_Why is everyone on my case about this? I'm sorry I did it! If I could take it back, I would! I mean remember back on Total Drama Island when a certain Earth Keeper kissed Trent in front of me? She did it to hurt me! This kiss, well it was... accidental!_"

"_Yeah and Heather ended up getting her head shaved bald at the end of the season! I wonder what they're going to do to you! Well, not they, Courtney!_" Izzy cackled.

Gwen sighed aloud.

"_All I can say is, I'm disappointed in you. Both you and Courtney are my friends and I can see how this is going to affect both of you badly. And I don't mean just game wise..._" Bridgette said with a sad tone to her words.

"_What are you guys talking about?_" Heather cut in. "_I'm trying to sleep over here and there's all this buzzing going on in my head thanks to you!_" she snapped.

"_Nothing!_" Gwen forced Heather out of the Link with some protests from the latter.

"_Holy hell! Eva's down here kicking up a rage! Apparently Trent spilled some juice on her by accident and she wants to kill him!_" Izzy yelled cheerfully through the Link.

"_Oh my gosh! Trent!_" Gwen clutched her face in worry.

"_Oh no... Gwen, we're going to stop Eva from tearing up the place and killing Trent. Remember what I said._" Bridgette said, cutting off the Link.

* * *

Meanwhile, down in the cargo hold Alejandro sat alone.

He held an orb of darkness in his hands and spoke to it.

"Well, I'm doing what I can right now!" Alejandro said.

"I don't care!" Radcliffe said to his orange-brown orb of light in his throne room. "You're not doing enough! You're right in there with two of the Keepers! I want you to do more! Alana is messing with the magical governments through her position as Vice President of Alma- doing a very good job of it by the way- and you haven't even managed to get the Earth Keeper out of the game yet!"

Alejandro fumed at this.

"And what's dear old José doing?" Alejandro asked bitterly.

"He's busy gathering recruits to our cause- and doing extremely well at it, I might add!" Radcliffe said snidely.

"As for me, even before I knew who the Keepers were I risked a little field trip to Spectra. I knew they would be revealed soon so I kidnapped one of their highest officials while he was on a little official visit there after some intelligence that Alana gathered while in Nadir. Causes discord between the two planets and gets me a great mind controlled servant at the same time, doesn't it? Carl makes a great mind controlled servant. Does whatever I tell him to!" Radcliffe said, smirking at said mind controlled servant.

"_More like slave..._" Alejandro muttered.

"What was that?" Radcliffe asked.

"Nothing, nothing at all!" Alejandro said hastily.

"I thought so..."

"Carlos is not of much use to me. For one thing, he is in no way inclined towards evil and he's completely immune to psychic attacks, which sucks. Believe me or not, I tried it on him already... Plus he is too well known on Earth for his soccer abilities for the many disappearances I would require of him to go unnoticed by Hasim, that overly cheerful know -it- all..."

"How did you explain Carl's disappearance on Spectra?" Alejandro asked.

"Let's just say that some vampires from the Mortem region got him..." Radcliffe said, an evil smirk on his face.

Alejandro shuddered.

"Back to your duties. Mess with them. Heather, I have noticed, is very highly suspicious of you game wise but of your magical status she is currently unaware. Keep it that way. She is also a very stubborn individual who will ignore all the signs until it is too late. You need to play on that along with her arrogance and pride. That way, everything we both need will fall into place..." Radcliffe said.

"Oh, I understand..." Alejandro finished his conversation and left the cargo hold.

What they both didn't know was that someone was watching them there this whole time. Someone that knew quite well what could happen if they succeeded. Someone that would do all he could to stop it...

* * *

_**Review! You know you want to...**_


	12. Greece's Pieces

**Disclaimer:** See chapter 1.

* * *

In First Class once again, the two remaining Keepers on Team Amazon were enjoying its luxuries. Or at least, Heather was...

Gwen on the other hand, was too nervous about the events in London to enjoy much. Especially as Courtney had chosen to strike up a lively conversation about Duncan.

"He looks so good! Doesn't he look good?" Courtney gushed.

"He looks _great!_ I'm _so_ happy... for you! Happy for you!" Gwen said.

Gwen was well aware of what she did and was really feeling guilty. Here she was, listening to Courtney, someone she had always been standing on thin ice with before and had _finally_ managed to become friendish with, gush about Duncan being back, _obviously_ so happy about it and she had to go and ruin any possibility of this continuing by kissing her boyfriend!

"_This guilt is going to kill me, isn't it? I can't stand it!_" she said to herself.

She got up and walked away to use the confessional.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Gwen:** "Ugh, What am I doing? The moment I finally became "friendish" with Courtney, I _kiss_ her boyfriend, I'm a horrible person. If it happens again, I'll tell her. Ohh, is it wrong that I really, really want it to happen again? Agh, _horrible person!_"

**Courtney:** "It's so nice to have a girl to talk to, especially now that Duncan's back. Gwen probably still has a crush on him. Who wouldn't? But she also likes her teeth, _a lot!_"

* * *

However, unknown to the both of them, Heather was actually wide awake when they were having their conversation and glanced over when she sensed the awkwardness in the Energy Keeper's voice and that was _without_ Empathy powers.

She sat there thinking to herself. "_What's going on with Gwen? Her tone when she was talking about Duncan with Courtney, her acting weird- well, weirder than usual after London... Then she cuts me out of the Link and is quite willing to talk to the others... Must be something that would affect the game somehow... but what?_"

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"Something's up with Gwen. I know it. Did you hear _and_ see the awkwardness in her voice! Something is up with Weirder-Than-Usual Weird Goth Girl and I will find out what!" _*she punches her palm*_

* * *

Meanwhile in economy class Alejandro sat there pondering his next move.

"_If I don't do something soon, Radcliffe will have my hide! But what can I do? All of my subtle manipulations have gotten three- well technically only one Keeper out of the game since Izzy got herself crushed by a plane and Lindsay's fashion sense isn't as good as she thinks it is... It will take more than that to divide them as Radcliffe needs... I managed to do a good job on Bridgette though. Ha! Getting stuck to a pole! I have to say, that was probably my favourite song so far!_" He chuckled to himself... before having his thoughts interrupted by Owen's sleep ramblings.

Both Alejandro and Tyler sat there glaring at the chubby teen until so frightened by their glares, he ran off.

Being as observant as he was, he noticed the tension surrounding Tyler.

"What's wrong?" he asked him.

"_I saw something!_" Tyler whispered back.

However when Duncan awoke and threatened the jock, Alejandro immediately picked up on this and decided to play on it.

"_Why just mess with Heather alone? If the opportunity arises, why not mess with everyone else too?_" He said to himself, smirking.

He walked off to use the confessional.

* * *

While in the common area, Heather and Alejandro stood across from each other silently and glaring daggers at each other.

The two other magical beings present looked at each other knowingly.

"_They like each other!_" they said to themselves.

Soon Chris came in to announce their next destination.

"Prepare yourselves for challenges of an amateur caliber!" He exclaimed.

The teams immediately looked pleased, thinking that they were going to get it easy for once.

"'Cause we're recreating the original Olympics!"

And now they're not pleased...

"And we're heading to the birthplace of the Olympics right now, in-"

"Greece!" Courtney exclaimed.

"Atlantis?" Sierra asked

"Mount Olympics?" Owen asked.

"Wrong, fictional and _what? _We're going to Rome, Italy!"

Heather blinked. "_That's not right..._" she thought.

"But Courtney was correct. The Olympics originated in Greece." Alejandro said.

"No they didn't... They originated in..." Chris insisted.

"Greece! They're right!" Gwen exclaimed.

"_Where the hell did he get such off-kilter information? Everyone knows the Olympics are originally Greek!_" Gwen and Heather thought. They then looked at each other, Heather with a curious expression on her face which Gwen did not like at all.

"_Why is she looking at me like that? Does she know?_" Gwen wondered worriedly, this time making sure that the Link was closed.

"Everyone should probably hold on to something, everyone except you!" she snapped out of it in time to heed Chris' warning and grabbed the table leg nearest to her.

Everyone onboard screamed in terror as the plane tilted and an intern fell out of the open door.

Heather lost her grip and was about to fall out of the side of the plane when she felt a strong hand grip hers. She glanced up to see Alejandro holding it. She glared at him sharply and when she felt the plane righting itself, she immediately let go, glaring at him even more.

"_Who the hell does he think he is anyway!_" she thought.

"Alright then. Greece it is!" Chris exclaimed.

* * *

"Welcome to Athens, Greece!" Chris started.

However as Gwen was now carrying on a telepathic conversation with Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay she heard none of this.

"_Does Heather suspect?_" Bridgette asked.

"_I'm not sure. I've seen her looking suspiciously at me but I don't think she knows what happened..._" Gwen said.

"_That's good! At least you get to live a little while longer!_" Izzy exclaimed.

"_Thanks for the reassurance, pyro!_" Gwen muttered gloomily.

"_Keep your head in the game, Gwen. I know it'll be hard but you mustn't let it drive you nuts. We really don't need another Izzy. She's enough of a handful as it is..._" Bridgette said.

"_But she'll find out eventually..._" Gwen said.

"_You will have to tell her sometime. If she finds out otherwise, it's not going to be pretty!_" Bridgette advised.

"_Hey, what if Drew tells her?_" Lindsay pointed out.

"_Lindsay is right. What happens then?_" Izzy asked.

"_Somehow I don't think he will say anything._" Bridgette commented.

Gwen raised an eyebrow at this. "_I'm hoping we'll get the chance to talk about it._"

"_Let's hope you do. We can't lose you now!_" Izzy cackled.

"_Once again, thanks for the reassurance, Izzy. I don't know what fate was doing when it made you the Fire Keeper. Crazy people are not suited for that element, or any element at all!_" Gwen muttered.

"_Agreed, Greta! Kelsey almost set my whole room on fire yesterday_!" Lindsay exclaimed.

"_One, my name is Izzy, not Kelsey. And two, it was just a little spark!_" Izzy rolled her eyes.

"_Sigh. Talk to you later, Gwen._" Bridgette said, cutting her out.

"So, any volunteers to enter the maze for the scavenger hunt?" Chris asked.

"I'll do it, I suppose." Duncan volunteered.

"Me!" Gwen said, stepping forward.

Both looked at each other and as soon as they realized what they had done, they immediately began protesting.

"You can go ahead. I'll do another challenge." Gwen said.

"No, I insist, you should go!" Duncan countered.

"_Why didn't I pay attention! If I had, this potentially awkward moment wouldn't have come up!_" Gwen wailed to herself.

Heather was watching this keenly. "_Hmmm..._" she thought. "_This keeps up and I may just have a reason to test my Retrocognition ability. Haven't tried it yet, but this seems like it would be the perfect opportunity..._" she smirked to herself.

Alejandro too was watching this scene keenly.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro:** "Now there's tension between Duncan and Gwen? Perhaps Tyler and Gwen are secretly dating and Duncan is..." He paused. "Nah... No. No. No. _Patience..._"

* * *

As he left, it occurred to him that this might be a golden opportunity to mess with Gwen as well as Heather.

"_Why not try to score double points for Radcliffe's favour? If I pull this off, I'll do much better than what José is probably doing..._" he smirked to himself.

He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he almost bumped into the Earth Keeper as she herself was on her way to use the confessional.

"Hey! Watch it, jerk!" she snapped at him.

"Heather, hermosa! ¿Es un bien día para la competición, sí?" he asked her, smirking.

"Don't call me beautiful. I know it's true, but you're only doing that to try and flatter me. And yes, it is a great day for a competition isn't it? Like I said before, I'm _great_ in gold!" Heather said, smirking before walking off, leaving Alejandro surprised.

"Since when are _you_ fluent in Spanish?" he asked, shocked.

Heather rolled her eyes. "Let's just say you don't know what I can _really_ do!" she said, before walking off and thinking to herself. "_Stupid jerk person! Why does he have to hang around when I need to use my powers! Now I'll have to come back later!_"

Before leaving himself, Alejandro watched her leave and said to himself "Oh I know _a lot_ more than you think..." he said to himself before rejoining his team.

* * *

As this was going on, the teams were now at the wrestling ring, waiting to begin that challenge.

"Where were you, Heather?" Sierra asked, since she spotted her sneaking back to the challenge.

"Who me? Nowhere you should be concerned about..." Heather replied casually.

"If you say so..." Sierra shrugged.

"As the strongest Amazon, I volunteer to fight my team!" Courtney said.

Heather rolled her eyes at this. "_Oh please._" She said to herself. "_If she only knew I was an Enhanced Human as well as having Elemental powers. She'd stand as much chance against me in a fight as an ant to a gorilla!_" she smirked to herself.

"I'm pretty sure _I'm_ the strongest..." Cody said, walking out into the ring.

Courtney gave a little chuckle at this and Sierra immediately volunteered to fight her.

"_We're on the same team, idiot!_" Heather practically screamed to herself.

"Okay then... I really need someone from team I am Really Really Really Really Hot to step in here..." Chris said.

"Come on, Al! We can take them!" Owen exclaimed while having Alejandro's head in a sort of headlock.

"_One, do not call me Al, you butterball! And two, let go of my head already! When Radcliffe takes over, after Heather you'll be next go!_" Alejandro fumed to himself.

When Tyler said that he was on the wrestling team in grade school, he sounded really eager to be a part of the challenge and this is what Alejandro picked up on.

"If I allow you to take my place in this competition, you must promise to repay the favour later on." Alejandro offered.

Tyler nodded.

As he went in, Alejandro smiled evilly to himself and rubbed his hands together in glee.

"_Perfect..._"

* * *

Back at Playa Des Losers 2, Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay were talking together in Izzy's room during one of the commercial breaks. It was decorated with lots of posters of aliens, monster movies, weapons and old wanted posters of the Fire Keeper.

"Wow, this is a... _unique_ choice of décor, Izzy..." Bridgette said, looking around at all of the disturbing posters and examining a small statue of some grotesque animal.

"Why thanks!" Izzy said, genuinely touched.

"So you two have watched the episode so far, what do you think?" Bridgette asked.

"I think that Gwen isn't going to last much longer..." Lindsay said.

Izzy blinked. "Wow! You've gotten our Energy Keeper's name right, for once! God job!" she said, grinning.

"Wow, thanks Kelsey!" Lindsay said, getting up to give 'Kelsey' a hug.

"MY NAME IS IZZY, DAMMIT!" Izzy roared, threatening her with a fire ball. Lindsay squealed in fright and ran to cower behind Bridgette.

"Calm down you two!" Bridgette said, squirting some water onto her hand from a nearby bottle to put out the fire.

"Izzy, have you forgotten that there are cameras and microphones all over this hotel! What are you thinking, using your powers like that!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"Relax, Bridgey! After we first learnt we were the Keepers, I searched every corner of my room for said cameras and microphones! And when I found them all, I used them to create a bonfire! _**It was such fun...**_" Izzy said, with a mad gleam in her eye.

There was soon a knock on the door.

"_**COME IN!**_" Izzy shrieked, causing the other two girls to cover their ears in pain.

When Leshawna entered, she was rubbing her ear in pain too. "Girl, you **real** crazy, you know that?" she said.

"So I've been told... By practically everyone I know!" Izzy said nonchalantly, picking her nails.

"_No surprise there..._" Leshawna muttered under her breath and rolled her eyes. "I just came to tell you that the episode's about to come off commercial break!"

"Oh, goody! I want to see if Gwen survives!" Izzy exclaimed, bolting out the room, doing cartwheels down the steps and landing right between Eva and Noah.

"Hey guys!" Izzy said cheerfully to them. Noah gave her an incredulous look while Eva merely rolled her eyes.

Back upstairs, Leshawna was looking at Bridgette and Lindsay weirdly. "Why am I surprised?" Leshawna said, going downstairs herself.

When they joined the others, the television area was already crowded so Leshawna and Lindsay managed to squeeze in beside Beth. Bridgette sat on Geoff's lap and gave him a quick peck before turning to the television.

Gwen and Duncan were shown searching the maze when they bumped into one another.

They nervously began to talk (or in Duncan's case, sing!).

Trent squirmed visibly at this.

Justin and Harold who sat on either side of him, both rested a reassuring hand on either of his shoulders.

"Chill dude. Nothing to get worked up over!" Justin said.

"He's right." Harold agreed.

"It's not just that I feel strangely about. I'm also kind of worried. What will happen to her when Courtney- and everyone else in the game finds out? She'll be a goner!" Trent said worriedly.

Justin and Harold looked at each other with expressions that clearly said that they didn't think Gwen was going to be around much longer.

Soon Duncan and Gwen began to sing.

As the song progressed, the eliminated contestants noticed that Alejandro was sneaking around the pair, listening to the song they were singing with a most evil look on his face.

Most of those watching immediately began to make vehement exclamations of disgust and hatred at him.

"He's up to no good, I know it!" Eva roared, slamming her fist onto the center table, sending a bowl of popcorn flying at DJ, who screamed and ducked.

Bridgette went rigid.

"Babe?" Geoff looked at her, concerned. "You okay?"

"Heh-heh. Just fine, sweetie!" she said, giving him another kiss.

"_GWEN!_" she practically screamed through the Link.

"_OUCH! I'm kind of in the middle of singing, Bridgette. Can't it wait? It's kind of difficult to sing and talk telepathically at the same time, you know!_"

"_Sorry, but it can't. Alejandro is hanging around you two, so watch what you sing!_"

"_Wha? Okay, I'll do that, but I don't know if Duncan will..._" Gwen said, immediately closing the Link.

Bridgette sighed.

"_I can't help but feel that this is really going to end badly, not just game wise, but in a much worse way, you know?_" she said to Lindsay and Izzy telepathically.

Finally as the song neared its end Gwen did a flip with such agility, landing on top of the bear and getting away from it quickly that Bridgette just had to wonder if Vesta taught her that.

"_No, she didn't Bridgette. I read about a move like that in my Elemental Book._" Gwen said, chuckling slightly at the exclamation of shock that Bridgette sent her.

"_Had a small vision of you wondering about that._" She explained.

"_Oh..._"

* * *

Back in Greece, the contestants were now being introduced to the next event.

"Welcome to the hurdles event, the ultimate test of speed and flexibility. Players must leap higher and higher over these hurdles while they race to the finish line. First one across wins _the gold._" Chris explained.

"_Sounds easy enough!_" Heather thought.

"_Don't be so sure!_" Bridgette said to her.

"_Oh, so now you want to talk to me?_" Heather snapped back, shutting off the Link.

"And since Heather and Alejandro are the only two left to compete, they'll be going head to head!" Chris exclaimed.

"_Hmmm..._" Heather thought, this time making sure that the Link was fully closed. "_Perhaps now with my being an Enhanced Human, I'd actually win this thing!_"

She smirked at her opponent, thinking she had him now.

"Good luck beating me! You'll find that I'm _fast and flexible!_" she said, stretching a leg up to her shoulder.

Alejandro's only response was to show how much _more _flexible he was by tying his hair into a ponytail with his own feet.

Everyone, even Heather herself stared at him blankly, jaws dropped.

"_Okay, now I'm suspicious._" Heather said to herself. "_There is __**no**__ way he could be an ordinary human! No wait, I'm probably just being paranoid. Just because he's unreasonably flexible does __**not**__ mean he has powers of any kind!_"

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Gwen:** "No man should be _**that **_flexible!"

* * *

"That should be Cody out there! In second grade, he competed in a hurdles event and won the coveted participation award!" Sierra squealed, hugging him closely.

"The things you know frighten all of us. Really, they do!" Chris remarked.

"_Gotta agree with you there!_" all the Keepers remarked to themselves.

"So... On your marks, get set, go!"

And they were off!

Alejandro gained an early lead on her.

"Don't worry Heather; you can always borrow my medal if you ever need to look like a winner!" Alejandro said, taunting her as he showed off.

"Go Heather, go!" Team Amazon cheered her on.

"_Focus! Don't let his showing off work you up! It will be his downf-_" As soon as Heather thought this, Alejandro hit his head against a hurdle, allowing her to get ahead of him.

She put on as much speed as she could manage and eventually won.

"YES!" Heather and her team began to cheer.

"NO!" Alejandro skidded past her on his knees. Owen began to wail.

"_I knew his oversized ego would be his downfall!_" Heather cheered.

"_So did I!_" Bridgette cheered with her.

Heather sent her the equivalent of an incredulous look.

"_What? I want to see him go down!_" Bridgette said.

"_I guess that's something we can agree on!_" Heather said, grinning.

* * *

As they proceeded to the tiebreaker challenge, Gwen received a telepathic message.

"_Gwen! When you're finished in Greece, Hasim will be coming for you to take you to Spectra to meet their officials. Be ready._" Vesta said.

"_Okay._" Gwen said.

"_Oh, and Gwen? I know we all make mistakes sometimes so I'm still rooting for you._" Vesta said reassuringly.

Gwen smiled slightly at this and looked over at Heather. Judging by the look on her face, she was also speaking to Deanna.

"Well, since both Team Amazon and Team Super Hot Me are now tied, it's time for the dreaded tiebreaker!" Chris exclaimed gleefully.

"_Dreaded by who?_" Heather muttered.

"Seriously, where is Duncan?" Courtney asked.

"Duncan will join us as soon as he can, you know, if he's still alive." Chris said coolly.

"_**If!**_ What does that mean?" Gwen exclaimed.

Everyone turned to look at her.

"Hold up Chris." Courtney waved at him dismissively "Gwen, you sounded _really_ concerned there. _Too concerned..._"

"_Uh, oh..._" Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay said, knowing what would come soon.

Heather picked up on this. "_Aha! So it's something to do with Gwen and Duncan that you keep talking about and leaving me out!_" she said, smirking mischievously. "_I __**will**__ find out what's going on here!_"

* * *

Back at Playa Des Losers, all present were watching this scene with a sense of foreboding.

"Oh dear..." Beth said. "Courtney is about to murder her, isn't she?" Beth said.

"I don't doubt that!" Leshawna said.

"Anyway, let's get back to the challenge people!" Chris said.

Everyone in the lounge quieted.

"The tiebreaker challenge is that one member from each team must don these authentic Spartan battle costumes, the wings of which were made of wax and the feathers we find in the plane's engines..."

DJ whimpered at this.

"... and fly up to that crane. First one to get there wins the gold!"

"Sounds dangerous," Eva said. "I'd do it!"

"I somehow don't doubt that..." Noah muttered.

Quick enough, Cody and Tyler were the ones from their teams to step up to the challenge.

"_Bridgette!_" Marissa called out to her.

"_What?_" Bridgette asked.

"_Sorry for interrupting your viewing, but I need to tell you that once the episode is over, Hasim is coming for you take you to Spectra._" Marissa said.

The Water Keeper glanced at the other two Keepers present and judging by their expressions, Akari and Aideen had told them the same thing.

She turned her attention back to the television.

"Tyler, it's time to call in my favour. Please tell Courtney what you know about Duncan and Gwen..." Alejandro smirked evilly.

"_Well, this most certainly will be interesting..._" Heather said with a malicious tone in her voice to all the other Keepers.

Bridgette could _really_ feel the anxiety and fear coming from Gwen now.

"Uhhhh... I SAW DUNCAN AND GWEN KISS!" Tyler practically shouted.

"And _now_ the shit has hit the fan..." Eva said, quite enjoying the drama.

"_So this is what it was all about!_" Heather exclaimed excitedly. "_You guys knew about this and wanted to keep it from me! But it didn't work! HA!_" she laughed at the others. "_Oh, I am going to enjoy this!_"

"WHAT!" Courtney screamed and lunged at Gwen, only prevented from beating her to a pulp by Sierra restraining her.

"I'm surprised that Sandy could hold her back, seeing as how strong Cora is when she gets **really **mad!" Lindsay exclaimed.

Everyone there nodded in agreement.

"HOW COULD YOU! I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIEND_-ISH!_ I HATE YOU! _**I HATE YOU!**_" Courtney shrieked so loudly that both those in Greece and those watching at Playa De Losers 2 covered their ears.

"_Holy crap! I'm really in for it now, aren't I?_" Gwen wailed.

"_Yes, yes you are!_" Heather said, smirking.

"Go!" Chris shouted.

"Fly Cody, fly!" Sierra shouted after Tyler took off.

"Cody, stay where you are!" Courtney breathed.

"But we'll lose..." Sierra said puzzled, before glancing at Gwen.

"_Oh._ Cody, stay where you are!"

"You are _**so**__eli-mi-na-ted_!" Courtney seethed.

"She's got _my_ vote!" Heather said.

"Agreed!" Sierra said.

The challenge progressed, and Team Amazon once again due to Cody's refusal to lose on purpose to get Gwen voted off, won as he managed to snatch the medal off the crane before his 'wings' gave way.

* * *

After the challenge was complete and before Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot's nail biting elimination, Heather snuck around the area of the confessional.

Before entering it, she reached for the camera and using her enhanced strength, ripped it out of the holder, effectively disconnecting it.

Then stepping inside the confessional and making sure it was locked and casting a repulsion spell around the general area- a spell that she learnt from her Elemental Book...

"_I must see for myself what really happened!_" she thought. She then recited the words to the retrocoginition spell and transformed at the same time, having learnt that the spell was even stronger if she was transformed.

She flapped her wings once or twice and they began to glow a soft green. She put her palm on the counter of the confessional and everything came to her, from Duncan and Courtney's reunion to when Tyler caught Duncan and Gwen kissing.

She stood up and de-transformed. "_Well then, what Ale-Jerkface pressured Tyler to say is true, after all! And here I thought it might have been something he made up..._"

Walking out of the confessional and doing the necessary spells to restore everything, she went back to First Class and sat across from a loudly wailing Courtney, resting a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her, with Gwen glancing over at them nervously.

After all the drama that was Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot's elimination ceremony, Gwen went back to First Class, where she could feel the eyes of everyone present on her, Courtney's glare especially.

"_In for it now huh, Gwen?_" Heather gloated.

"_Enough of that!_" Bridgette declared.

"_You're not that much different, Heather. You would have done the same thing. And to break someone's heart on purpose!_" Izzy said. "_Oh wait, you already have..._"

"_I'm on Greta's side though. I know what she did was wrong and all, but she knows that too. She didn't intend to hurt Cora!_" Lindsay said.

"_Thanks Lindsay!_" Gwen said, tiredly.

She then glanced around the room and saw that everyone was frozen.

"_See you girls soon! Hasim is here!_" Gwen exclaimed, going out into the common area, where Hasim indeed stood, waiting.

Heather came out behind her and noting the fact that he had came for them first, questioned it.

"Well my dear, I had business to take care of in the area, so I just thought it more convenient, is all." He said, smiling.

"What _kind _of business?" Heather asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow.

Hasim, if this was even possible, smiled even more. "You'll find out eventually. Now, let's go get the others, shall we?" he said, waving his staff and transporting them to the lobby of Playa De Losers 2 where Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay stood waiting.

"And off to Spectra we go!" he exclaimed, teleporting the girls once again.

* * *

Another chapter finally completed! I hope you enjoyed it as usual!

_**-Review, peoples!**_


	13. Welcome to Spectra

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"Welcome to Caillin, the capital of Spectra girls!" Hasim said.

The Keepers found themselves on a float decorated with ribbons of purple, black and silver- Spectra's national colours. The float however was actually floating off the ground, something which they marveled at.

The Spectrans also lined the streets like in Alma, cheering them on.

"This so cool!" Izzy remarked.

They also noticed that unlike in Saurian, the city was not overly technological. In fact, the city seemed a perfect combination of both Victorian architecture and the futuristic technology they were not yet used to.

The decorations also managed to combine their power colours and symbols with both regular decorations and holograms.

"How do they do it!" Gwen asked in fascination, gazing at their surroundings like the others were.

Hasim chuckled.

"The royal family wanted to give Spectra a unique balance of both old and new ages ago. Brought in a lot of specialists and stuff from all over the universe and it took a few months, even _with_ magic, but hey, they pulled it off!" Hasim explained.

"_This_ took a few months? Giving an entire city a whole new look took _only a few months..._" Heather asked skeptically.

"You are forgetting that this universe has both advantages of superior technology and magic, Heather. What would take years on Earth to complete could possibly be finished in a few weeks here!" Hasim said.

"What did the citizens think?" Bridgette asked. "Did they like it?"

"They loved it! Even Queen Vasillisa came up to see it!" Hasim said.

"Is she this planet's ruler?" Lindsay asked.

"Nope. That would be Queen Tiana. Queen Vasillisa is in charge of Nexus, otherwise known as the Realm of The Dead." Hasim explained.

The Keepers looked stunned at his words.

Hasim chuckled. "All the members of the Spectran royal family are Necromancers. Or should I say Tiana is a Necromancer..."

Heather shuddered. "Anyone who can communicate with dead people is probably creepy and gloomy. I'm not sure I will like her that much..."

"Always assuming the worst of people, aren't you, **Alejandro's Girlfriend?**" Izzy grinned.

"**Don't call me that!**" Heather snapped.

"She and Marcus could care less. Tiana is actually pretty nice. Marcus on the other hand, is a bit of a cynic." Hasim said.

"What is she like, Tiana?" Lindsay asked.

"She became queen at the age of fifteen after her parents were both killed in an airship accident..." Hasim said.

"Oh wow..." Gwen said. "And I thought I had it bad!"

Heather looked her up and down. "Judging by your horrible fashion sense and certain events in Greece you still do!" she snapped.

Gwen fumed at this but did not answer.

"So she was a teenage queen! Hey! That reminds me of Dancing Queen, that ABBA song! **Oh Dancing Queen, Teenage Queen, Dancing Queen!**" Izzy began to sing.

"_Whoever said she __**was**__ a teenage queen?_" Hasim thought, smiling to himself. They were in for a surprise.

"... She is also a very active person, rather good humored as well. You would probably get along fine." Hasim continued.

"Enneidrags, soun snoroda suov!" **(1)** A girl shouted from the crowd.

Even though due to their Omnilingualism abilities they could understand what she said, they still looked confused.

Hasim noticed this and chuckled. "They are speaking Spectran. What, surely you did not think that the languages you are familiar with on Earth are the only ones that exist, do you?" he said laughing.

"Actually, yes!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"I still can't get over all this newness! It's too overwhelming! And if it's like this for me, imagine what it's like for Lindsidiot!" Heather exclaimed. "I mean I can understand languages I never knew before like when I found out with Ale-Jerkface and his Spanish in Greece but actually speaking it?"

"**Éh! Ec ste s****èrt elbatuoder!**" **(2) **Izzy tried her new language abilities, shouting in glee.

Apparently the crowd agreed with her because they shouted and cheered even harder at her words.

Encouraged by Izzy's boldness towards that part of their powers, they all began trying it too; cheering along with the crowds and answering shouted questions all the way.

* * *

When they finally got into the immediate area surrounding the Spectran royal palace, they hopped off the float and began walking.

"_Finally_ we get to interact with the people more personally!" Bridgette said as she signed an autograph for a young child.

The royal palace soon became clearly visible to them and it struck them with awe.

The building was large and rectangular with four towers in each corner. Elaborate carvings in lilac, black and silver intertwined on the walls. The roof of the whole building was covered with a special kind of glass that seemed to glimmer in the light.

Hasim noticed their stares and slack jaws and chuckled.

"And that's just the main building, ladies!" Hasim said.

They all looked at him incredulously.

"It looks bigger than Buckingham Palace!" Gwen gasped in amazement.

"It _is_ bigger than Buckingham Palace!" Hasim exclaimed. "Let's go, shall we?" he said, twirling his staff in his hands as he led them through the gates, being greeted with smiles and cheers from the royal staff all the way.

* * *

As they walked, Hasim seemed to grow puzzled. "Where is Tiana?"

"You mean she's not here?" Heather asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh she is here, on the palace grounds. Just not in the main building..." Hasim stopped a passing maid to ask her.

"Allis, uo tse al enier?" he asked.

"As Étsejam tse zehc Elayor Tiucric cvea nu ima!" **(3)** She exclaimed before walking off.

"We'd better go see her then. Come on ladies!" Hasim said, gesturing to them leading them out of a side door and onto what appeared to them to be a large motorcycle track with a domed roof all of them following with puzzled looks on their faces.

"_What would an uptight old queen be doing with one of those?_" Heather thought.

They soon heard the loud roaring of engines but it wasn't coming from the ground.

It was coming from the air.

There were two motorcycles flying in the air. Or at least they resembled motorcycles as they had no wheels and had _wings _resembling those on airplanes...

"Aren't motorcycles supposed to be on the ground and not in the air?" Lindsay asked, confused.

"Aren't they supposed to have wheels?" Bridgette asked, puzzled.

"Why do they have wings!" Gwen exclaimed in surprise.

"They can, if the rider wants them to be winged!" Hasim said, smiling.

One rider was riding a large, black motorcycle with an 'S' on it in Old English font which was silver and the other had one in the same design except that the 'S' was dark purple.

The second rider was obviously female, wearing a figure hugging black and purple leather racing outfit and a purple helmet, her long, thick, curly black hair beneath it flapping about in the breeze.

The other was male and well-built as his black and silver racing outfit showed off his muscles. His hair was black and in a short ponytail.

However the female's motorbike soon came to a halt in mid-air and a few revving-ups later it breathed its final breath and plummeted to the ground- with the rider still on it.

As the Keepers and the rider still in the air gasped in horror, the motorcycle flipped over in mid air with her pinned under it.

They had started out to help her but Hasim flung his hand out to stop them.

They looked at him quizzically and he nodded his head towards the scene before them.

When rider and motorcycle were about to hit the ground, the rider suddenly became intangible, held onto the bike which became intangible as well and went right through the ground.

The Keepers were still slack jawed at this when rider and bike resurfaced, unharmed. They both became solid again and as she removed her helmet, she grinned at them.

"Ladies, this is Queen Tiana." Hasim introduced.

Tiana was chocolate-skinned, looked to be about eighteen or nineteen years old and her dark eyes looked on in amusement at the Keepers' expressions.

"Iouq? Soun al eésnep siatéj enu elleiv emad tiord?"**(4) **she asked them.

They nodded, still unable to speak.

She laughed and then switched to English. "Then I think you'll find that's not true!"

The other rider landed beside her just then and after she reassured him she was all right in Spectran, he left.

"Is that a certain person I met last week?" Hasim asked, smiling.

"Yes it is!" Tiana replied, smiling bashfully. "I'm so glad I've found someone with similar interests and we get along so well! His brothers wouldn't come with him though, no matter how many invitations I extend. I wonder why..." she said thoughtfully.

She turned to the Keepers.

"Welcome to Spectra ladies! And before we start, don't be calling me any of that 'your majesty' crap. You can call me by name. I'm barely older than you are anyway! Second of all, I'm not going to be doing any boring political meetings. We're doing the fun stuff today!"

The Keepers looked at her incredulously.

"And third, Hasim, where is Marcus? Haven't seen him for a while..." Tiana said.

Before Hasim could answer however, Marcus showed up in the doorway.

"Ah! Here he is!" Tiana said cheerfully going to him. "Spectra's favourite cynic!"

"_Glad to know I'm thought of in that way..._" Marcus muttered.

Hasim chuckled at his friend's attitude. "Keepers, this is Marcus, Spectra's Immortal. He like Tiana is also a Necromancer and the only one of us to have royal connections."

"Really?" Lindsay asked curiously.

"Yes. I was the younger brother of one of Tiana's ancestors. In truth I am a prince but I would rather not call myself one..." Marcus said.

"That is so cool!" Lindsay remarked in admiration.

"If you say so." Marcus said.

"Has he always been like that?" Bridgette asked.

"Yes." Hasim answered. "He always has been. We all like him anyway!" he said, grinning.

"So do I!" Tiana exclaimed. "He seems pretty cynical at times but what I like about him is that he doesn't sugar-coat things. He is quite blunt, will tell you what he thinks at any time. I need that and he's good at it." Tiana said.

Marcus smiled slightly at this offhand comment.

"Your majesty, Hasim and I are going into town. Go and take a break with the Keepers today, there are no documents that need signing or any official meetings today..." Marcus said.

"Thanks, Marcus, I will!" Tiana said, leading the Keepers off.

* * *

"So, what has it been like for you, being the Keepers so far?" Tiana asked as she led them down the vast corridors.

"It certainly been quite been quite the experience!" Gwen exclaimed.

"I would imagine so. A lot of responsibility placed on your shoulders when you're young... And I was fifteen, a year younger than you are when I became Queen of my homeland!" Tiana said.

She turned into a nearby room which turned out to be a boardroom where she introduced them to a few government officials.

"This is Michael, head of the Mortem region, where most of the vampire populace live!" Tiana said, gesturing to a man with dark brown hair and brown eyes with a hint of red in them. He was also even paler than Gwen, something which Heather thought was impossible and said so, earning a glare from the Energy Keeper. They also noticed that for some strange reason, a silver hooded cloak with long sleeves was draped over the back of his chair.

Michael chuckled and spoke to them in English. "Pleased to meet you all. Don't worry, I won't bite!" he laughed, showing his fangs slightly when he saw their hesitancy to come nearer to him.

"Spectran vampires are not allowed to feed on or change unwilling victims. It's law here, something which he quite agrees with!" Tiana said.

After this, they became much more comfortable around him.

She led them across the room and introduced them to a tan-skinned woman with violet eyes and black hair pulled back into a ponytail. The fringe she had barely brushed the top of her eyes.

"And this, Keepers, is Miranda, the Alpha of the werewolf pack of the Sarema region." Tiana said.

"It is nice to meet you." She said, also in English. "How do you like Spectra so far?" she quizzed them.

"I like it!" Gwen exclaimed.

"It certainly is unique, I'll give it that." Bridgette admitted.

"_It scares me slightly..._" Heather muttered under her breath.

"And lastly, I must introduce you to our current Prime Minister, Chandler Morgan." Tiana gestured to a slightly overweight dark-skinned man with salt and pepper hair.

"Hello ladies. I hope you are enjoying our lovely planet." He said.

After coming out of that room, she led them to a large indoor courtyard where there was a large, ornately-carved ebony fountain playing in the center. They also noticed that the room they were in had soft music playing in the background and looked like a section of a park.

"This is the indoor gardens, where I often come to think. This and the Royal Racetrack that we were in when we met are my favourite places in the palace! Aside from my own room, of course!" Tiana said.

"You do have a lovely palace, Tanya!" Lindsay said admiringly.

Tiana raised an eyebrow at this.

"She's not that great with names..." Gwen explained.

"I see." Tiana said, walking into another corridor and gesturing up a flight of steps.

"My room is up there. Let's go, shall we?" she said, with a flamboyant gesture.

* * *

The Keepers huffed and puffed after walking up several flights of stairs while Tiana stood by, amused as they waited to catch their breath.

"And to think, _you're _the Enhanced Humans and not me..." she said with a chuckle.

"I don't think our full range of enhancements has kicked in yet..." Gwen said, wiping her brow and pushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"Never have I been so tired in my life!" Lindsay complained.

"For once in my life, I agree with you, Lindsidiot..." Heather said, holding a hand to her heaving chest.

"I've ran from the RCMP, battled aliens and endured the Total Drama series, but those crazy stairs have positively defeated me!" Izzy breathed.

Tiana rolled her eyes. "Once you've caught your breath, you should probably transform. The only way to access my room from here is to either fly or teleport. I can't teleport and I'm not strong enough to fly any of you..." she said.

After a few minutes, they did what she said. Tiana herself became ghost-like and floated ahead of them, showing the way.

The Keepers looked at each other surprised for a moment and then followed.

She led them to a large, round room with rails all along the middle because the middle of the room was hollow. When they flew over it, they could see several floors below.

"There's our destination!" She said, pointing to a large door in front of them which had a balcony connected to it. She landed first and put her palm on the DNA scanner there, which was in the place where a lock would be.

"Come on!" she beckoned them inside.

* * *

The first thought that went through their minds when they entered was "_WOW!_"

The room looked bigger than an average-sized house on the inside even though on the outside it looked much smaller.

It was decorated with décor from several areas of style with things that all the Keepers could agree appealed to them.

In one corner, there was also a large, silver tube-like device with a door, which Tiana immediately stepped into.

It glowed for about a second before she stepped out wearing a sleeveless dark purple, knee-length halter-top dress with a black waist belt, black leggings and black ballet flats and holding her previous outfit on a hangar.

She looked at their mystified faces and chuckled.

"That machine I just stepped out of is something that I was working on at university with my group. It was supposed to be a teleporter, but it didn't quite work out so we modified it to be a fashion consultant machine and it really works well now!" she laughed at the memory.

She looked at them still in their Keeper forms."You do realize that you can de-transform, right?"

They looked at each other and then themselves before de-transforming.

"You're at university _and _ruling a planet? How do you manage all of that _and_ manage to fit in some time for your hobbies?" Gwen asked.

"Very good scheduling, courtesy of my office staff. They really do deserve something nice done for them, they've never failed me yet!" Tiana answered.

"So, what's the name of the university you go to and what exactly is your major?" Gwen asked again.

"I'm a sophomore at Caillin Central University, doing Mechanical Engineering. I love that programme and wouldn't quit it for anything in the world!" Tiana said.

Heather chose then to ask a question. "Then why not do Law or History or something along those lines? It seems as if those subjects might be more... _useful_ to you as Queen..." she said.

Gwen frowned at her. "No, that's actually a good question, dear Energy Keeper!" Tiana said, noticing her frown. "Quite frankly Law bores me and the same for History. I'm not going to waste four years of my life on something which disinterests me." All of this was said as she walked across the room and flung open a door.

When the Keepers saw what was inside, they gasped.

"_Clothes, clothes, so many clothes!_" Heather thought in delight.

"_That has got to be the biggest closet in history!_" Gwen thought in surprise.

"_OH MY GOSH! LOOK AT ALL THE PAIRS OF SHOES!_" Lindsay gasped.

"_I especially like the combat boots. Great for running from the law!_" Izzy cackled.

"_And most of them look practical, like something you could actually wear!_" Bridgette added.

Tiana's royal closet was decorated in a gold and white scheme. There was a wall-to-wall mirror in the back and a small couch in a corner.

"Welcome to my royal closet! Contains fashions from several regions and planets, including Earth!" Tiana exclaimed.

"Earth? Really?" Gwen asked curiously.

"I do visit occasionally with Marcus, who poses as my uncle when we go. Your planet is really wondrous, I must say!" she commented as she put away her previous outfit.

"What places have you been to?" Bridgette asked as Lindsay inspected a pair of lilac strappy high heels embedded with diamonds.

"I'll get some of those for you when you come again, if you want Lindsay." Tiana said.

Said Air Keeper squealed happily.

Tiana turned back to Bridgette. "I've been to all the major fashion cities. New York, London, Paris, Milan, Tokyo... I want to visit Toronto next. You five are from Canada, aren't you?"

"I'm Canadian, but I lived in Malibu for a while before I came back." Bridgette answered.

"I'm Japanese by heritage." Heather answered. "Both my parents were born in Japan, but my sister, brother and I were all born in Canada."

"The rest of us are Canadian all the way." Gwen said.

"Says you!" Izzy interjected. "I have Scottish and Cherokee blood in my veins!"

"Anyway, I want to show you guys something really cool." she said, stepping of the closet and leading them over to a jewellery chest on her desk.

She removed a black pearl ring with a black pearl hollow circle on top. In the middle of that circle was a large, diamond-shaped onyx stone and smaller ones were inlaid on the circle itself.

"That's a beautiful ring!" Gwen said. "It appeals even to me!"

"Why thank you. It's one of a kind." Tiana said before throwing it into the air.

The Keepers gasped as the ring glowed purple, the circle part on top of the ring grew larger and the part beneath it became unfurled, attached itself to one side and grew longer.

Tiana reached up to catch it. "It's my scepter-ring. Only the rightful heir to Spectra's throne can use its powers." She explained.

The Keepers still stood there, jaws slack.

Tiana chuckled. "You still have a lot to learn about the magical universe, don't you?"

They could only nod.

"Without it, I can still imitate ghostly powers like becoming intangible, flying, invisibility and some ectoplasm blasts. However if I need to do something more powerful, for example to cross over into the Realm of the Dead and back, call up a spirit or do an exorcism, I need this. The only thing I can't do with or without it is to resurrect people." She said, twirling it in her hand.

"There's only one other person I know of who has a ring similar to this. The princess of Nadir." As she said it, her face darkened.

Gwen and Bridgette both noticed this, but Gwen spoke first.

"Why is it that when you mentioned Nadir, you seemed to get upset?" Gwen asked.

Tiana sighed and went to sit on a large sofa in the corner of the room, making the ring go back to normal and slipping it onto her finger. "Spectra and Nadir have been having some... diplomatic troubles since an incident a few months ago." She paused.

"About half a year ago, a Nadiri diplomat came here. Or at least, he would have been the Nadiri diplomat to Spectra..." she continued.

By this time Heather, Lindsay and Izzy (who had been swinging in the rafters like a monkey!) came over and were sitting around her, listening carefully.

"His name was Carl. Anyway, we were going to make the final arrangements for his position here. Apparently he went to see Michael in the Mortem region. However, he never came back..." Tiana trailed off.

The Keepers gasped.

"You don't mean..." Gwen gasped.

"Yes, I do mean. He was killed by a bunch of rogue vampires. _Or so we thought._ You see, we and other officials from other planets did some investigations into it. The Almans even have someone that passes them information from Radcliffe himself but that person was unable to get tangible proof so..."

"How could they? I mean if you have a reliable source passing you information from Radcliffe himself..." Bridgette said.

"Bridgette is right. I mean, that's absolutely unreasonable!" Heather exclaimed.

"_Crazy nutjobs..._" Izzy grumbled under her breath.

Tiana sighed and put a hand on her forehead. "Just thinking about it gives me a major headache. Queen Adara refuses to see reason. I fear war." She sighed.

The Keepers looked stunned at this.

"Surely not at a time like this when Radcliffe has revealed himself again, right?" Gwen asked.

"She would be wise not to, but right now, we're treading on fragile ground with them. As for the proof, we try and try to persuade her, but she is firm in her belief that the Mortem vampires had something to do with it..." Tiana said, rubbing her forehead. She stepped into a nearby door, which turned out to be her bathroom and came out with a glass of water.

After drinking it she began to speak again. "It's nice to have someone around my age to talk to about these things, you know? Marcus is good and all, but..." she stopped as Gwen rested a hand on her shoulder.

"I guess we do understand. At least I know I do." She said, reassuringly.

Heather scoffed at this but her thoughts were the opposite. "_I wish I had someone to talk to like that. My 'friends' at school and I aren't really that close..._"

Just then, Tiana's landline rang. Tiana headed over to the desk, sat at her chair and pressed a button on the phone.

Immediately, a hologram of Marcus appeared above it, Hasim standing in the background.

"_Woah._" Izzy dropped the book she was holding (Robot Circuitry!) and stared at the image in amazement. The others looked at it, startled.

Marcus actually smiled slightly at their expressions.

"Tiana, Hasim and I are back, as you can see. Can you bring the Keepers to the Atrium? They really must get back to Canada and the Jumbo Jet..."

"Sure." Tiana closed off the call.

"Well, time to fly..." she said, standing up and making herself ghostly again.

The Keepers transformed and flew through the door while Tiana phased through the wall, shutting the door behind her.

* * *

Hasim stopped at Playa Des Losers 2 first, dropping off Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay. "Had a good time today?"

"**Totally! Tiana was like, so awesome!**" Izzy cheered.

"She wasn't a boring old queen like Queen Eleanor of England..." Lindsay added.

The other four Keepers looked at each other weirdly and Gwen mentally face-palmed.

"Well, you now have to meet Wispera's president, Erendor's king and Nadir's king and queen so we'll see your opinion of them!" Hasim chuckled.

"Well, good-bye for now, you three!" Hasim waved to them as he teleported Heather and Gwen back to the Total Drama Jumbo Jet.

"Back into the game again! It seems you have a lot of excitement in your lives! You certainly cannot claim that it is boring!" Hasim laughed.

"Indeed it isn't!" Heather commented, giving Gwen the evil eye.

"Just remember, try not to let your... _personal issues_ get the better of you. You _both _know what can happen both game-wise and Radcliffe-wise when that happens. Just... be careful, okay?" Hasim said.

And with that, he disappeared.

_**Translations for this chapter:**_

* * *

**(1)** "Keepers, we love you!"

**(2)** "Hey, this is awesome!"

**(3)** "Allis, where is the Queen?" "Her majesty is at the Royal Racetrack with a friend!"

**(4)** "What? Thought I was an old lady, right?"

* * *

Another chapter completed! Boy did I have fun writing this one! Before anyone asks, yes I did name Queen Tiana here after Princess Tiana from Disney's the Princess and the Frog. Thought I should, since she's the first black Disney princess and all...

_So..._ Review, my lovely readers and tell me what you think!


	14. The Ex Files

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Alejandro was in the most secluded part of the cargo hold he could find. Once he was sure that he was alone, he pressed the bull pendant on his necklace and disappeared.

When he reappeared, it was on the outside of Radcliffe's castle.

"_I must remember to thank my mother for charming my necklace later._" He thought to himself.

He soon became shadow-like and slipped under the walls, going through several corridors until he arrived in Radcliffe's throne room.

He slid on the ground to the middle of the room and as his shadow-self rose up, he became three-dimensional again.

"It's been a while hasn't it?" Radcliffe said by way of greeting.

"I suppose it has." Alejandro said. On Radcliffe's right, Alana as Serafina stood, eyeing him.

"I called you here to tell you that you did pretty well in Greece with the Keepers. That episode was definitely entertaining!" Radcliffe said laughing.

Everyone else in the room started laughing as well.

"It will certainly make for some divisiveness in future among the Keepers and with their non-magical friends..." Radcliffe stopped laughing. As soon as he stopped, so did the others.

"Thank you." Alejandro said.

Radcliffe waved him off. "_However, _I see that you got a little _too_ distracted trying to show off. I know you want to intimidate the other team, but you must remember that you now have another motive for winning the competition and causing chaos among the other competitors. The task that I gave you."

"But all in all, I think you did a good job. Messing with Gwen there was brilliant. Now you are playing with the minds of two Keepers! Might I offer a suggestion?"

"Go ahead, I can't stop you..." Alejandro shrugged but then began to listen carefully.

"Surely you must have noticed by now that the Keeper's teammate, Courtney is... unstable." Radcliffe started.

Alejandro nodded.

"Manipulate her and you can cause a domino effect within her team. Perhaps you could encourage her to... make Duncan jealous somehow. If that works, the Energy Keeper would be thrown off her guard. The Earth Keeper would also be thrown off as she may be the only 'sane' member of the Amazons left. She may try to control the spiraling craziness around her along with her determination to beat you. The other three would be trying to reign in them both. _And they all will come crumbling down..._" Radcliffe chuckled to himself.

"You need to get back to the Total Drama Jumbo Jet now, before anyone notices you are no longer there. Just keep in mind what I said. _If you fail..._ I may not do it often, but I won't hesitate to kill unless I see it as necessary and believe me when I say that I take my time to enjoy the process..." Radcliffe said with an amused tone as Alejandro shuddered when he walked off.

"So... Alana, before you go back to Saurian, status report?" Radcliffe twirled his staff in one hand.

"Everything is going well. There is nothing much to report at the moment. Spectra and Nadir are still on tenterhooks with each other regarding the _Carl issue..._" she said, glancing at the aforementioned man who was standing in a corner, eyes staring blankly into the middle of the room.

Radcliffe looked at him for a moment before commenting. "It looks as if Carl's mental facilities are going downhill, what with the length of time the mind-control spell has been on him. Oh well..."

"And José, what say you?" Radcliffe turned to a figure that had been lurking in the shadows.

José stepped forward. Where Alejandro appeared to have inherited his looks from his mother since he hardly resembled his father, José was the polar opposite. His ear-length black hair was ruffled, his brown eyes shone with malice and he was even taller than his younger brother had been.

"Some of the younger Spectran vampires would be willing to help us out, but the werewolves on the other hand, very few of them would work for us willingly, from what I observed. The same applies to the Nadiri people. I haven't checked out the other planets though." He stepped back.

"Hmm... Where is your uncle, José? Weren't you supposed to invite him here?" Radcliffe asked.

"Apparently today, he's hanging around Wispera. Since a lot of people there are Empaths, he has to remain underground, you see. He's working on a potion to allow him to copy other people's powers." José explained.

"Hm. I guess that is acceptable for now. He needs to get Marisela to charm an object so he can teleport here too... Everything is going according to plan, I suppose. No one suspects a thing. Alana has infiltrated the Almanian government, which I still laugh at, as Vice-President, no less! They're going to fall, and hard!" Radcliffe exclaimed.

"I look forward to it!" Alana smirked.

"So do I, Alana, _so do I..._"

* * *

In first class again for the umpteenth time in a row, the members of Team Amazon were engrossed in their varying activities.

Gwen was sitting alone in a corner watching the others doing what they were doing.

Courtney was writing out her revenge plans for Gwen and Duncan "Pummel Duncan... _Hmm..._ Pummel Gwen... wash socks..." she burst out into tears.

Sierra and Cody sat across from her and while Cody was peacefully enjoying his candy, Sierra was cutting out a paper Gwen singing rather dementedly under her breath. "_The cradle will fall and down will come Gwen-_" she bit the head off the Energy Keeper's paper counterpart.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **"Gwen and Duncan? Humph, _duh!_ But boyfriend stealing's wrong. _She's gone..._"

* * *

Heather of course was enjoying it all, sitting at the bar talking to the intern there. "What a beautiful day it is! Mmm... what is that delicious smell? Oh, I know! It's..."

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"...TENSION! And it has nothing to do with me. I have never felt so safe. _Thanks, Gwen!_"

**Courtney: **"AAH!Gwen is going **down! **I can't believe I ever trusted that sun-fearing, emo-loving liar! Well, at least I broke up with Duncan on _my_ terms. It was totally empowering!"

_*Cut to the breakup scene in the common area where all the other contestants are watching a __**very**__ messy breakup.*_

Courtney threw a bowl of spaghetti and meatballs at Duncan, covering him in it and threw herself to the ground, kicking, screaming and crying like a child with a major temper tantrum problem.

Alejandro, though his face did not betray it was secretly enjoying the scene before him. "_Who knew breakups could be this entertaining?_" he thought.

Heather too was also hiding her enjoyment of this scene. "_Woah. Never knew breakups could be this entertaining! It's going to throw Courtney off though. Gotta monitor this..._"

Gwen watched as well. "_Oh boy. Courtney is going to be really scary about this, isn't she?_"

"_**HELL YES!**_" Izzy butted in.

"_Way to be reassuring..._" Gwen mumbled.

When Courtney kicked Duncan in the kiwis all present winced.

_*back to Courtney in confessional*_

**Courtney: **"At least I still have my pride!"

She paused for a moment, sniffled and then burst into tears.

* * *

In economy class, Tyler and Owen were talking while Alejandro sitting near them watched.

"I'm serious! The guy's a jerk with a capital 'G'! I'd never cheat on my Lindsay the way he hurt Courtney! The guy deserves two kicks to the-"

Owen interrupted him to speak and nearby Alejandro only began to pay attention when he began speaking of Duncan.

"The way I see it, Duncan is a double gold medalist in the Total Drama Babe-Olympics!" he exclaimed.

"_There's a Babe-Olympics?_" Tyler asked in awe.

"Well, Duncan _is_ the only guy in TD history to score two hotties!" Owen explained.

"Courtney _and_ Gwen! Punk's got mojo!" Tyler commented.

Alejandro smirked to himself. "_Perhaps now is the time to put Radcliffe's suggestion to work..._"

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: "**Duncan is a strong player. Solution? Courtney is volatile. She'll throw the Amazons off their game and Duncan off his game too. All she needs is _a little push._"

* * *

With Heather and Gwen, they both were reading their Elemental Books again.

Heather came across something which interested her greatly.

"_Hmm... This Golem Punch thing I see here, would definitely come in handy wouldn't it?_" she thought.

She was looking at a picture of the second Earth Keeper, Marjani's granddaughter, Makeba perfecting that spell. The picture moved in addition to describing the technique in words at the bottom.

"_This spell can be used to create a living creature out of rock that will not move unless you order it to. Great for making soldiers and such for beating the bad guys!_"

Meanwhile Gwen was checking out hers, trying to relax, which was pretty difficult for her at the moment...

"_So apparently, I can pull energy from other people and control theirs. I should try that when Courtney rages at me again..._" Gwen thought.

She peeked around the back of her chair to glance at Courtney. The glare she had waiting for her from the C.I.T. scared her.

"_It's like she knew that I was going to look!_" Gwen shuddered.

All of a sudden, the plane started to shake violently and she was thrown out of her chair.

"HA! That's what you get, for not being prepared, Weird Goth Girl!" Courtney shrieked, pointing out the seatbelt that she wore.

"HEY! ONLY _**I'M**_ ALLOWED TO CALL HER THAT!" Heather shrieked back at her from the bar, which she managed to hold onto so she didn't fall.

"Attention potential crash victims! Please remain calm!" Chris' voice came over the intercom.

"_When you put it like that, how the fuck is one supposed to stay calm?_" Heather shrieked mentally.

"_I actually agree with you there, Heather._" Gwen replied.

"_Turbulence, huh?_" Bridgette joined them.

"_Turbulence is fun!_" Izzy exclaimed.

"_No it isn't! Turbulence is scary, Kelsey! I sure am glad I'm not there!_" Lindsay said in fright.

"Our autopilot is testing some new equipment. Snacks in the common area if you don't believe me and want a last meal." Chris continued.

Despite being terrified, Heather managed to roll her eyes.

Sierra was shrieking in terror holding onto Cody while he himself was screaming in terror form both the plane's violent turbulence and the fact that she was holding onto him so tightly.

"Come on people, let's go!" Gwen ran out of the room.

"Who died and made you-" Courtney started.

"You're going to die if you don't get up, Courtney!" Heather yelled.

"Make me!" Courtney yelled.

Heather stomped her foot and the plane did a particularly violent lurch, throwing the C.I.T. off her feet.

Courtney's eyes grew wide in terror and she ran off. "_**We're going to die!**_" she wailed.

"_Thank you Deanna!_" Heather thought as she ran out.

* * *

"You call these snacks? We're all gonna die!" Owen wailed once everyone was in the common area, yet somehow managing to gulp down three bananas at the same time.

When Duncan entered the room and he and Gwen began flirting in their own unique way, Courtney began to get upset.

Alejandro saw this as a great opportunity to put his and Radcliffe's ideas into action. He smirked before approaching Courtney and putting on his act.

"Unbelievable!" he exclaimed.

When Courtney turned around to glare at him, he continued.

"Forgive me, I am simply offended on your behalf! Perhaps a little... _payback_ is in order. How would Duncan like it if you flirted with someone?" he suggested.

Courtney glanced over at Tyler who somehow managed to mash a banana into his eye.

She then grew an evil smirk on her face.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Courtney: "**Duncan will lose it! It's basic breakup math! The more mad Duncan gets, the more jealous he looks, the cruddier Gwen feels, the more vindicated I am. It's perfect!"

* * *

Back at Playa Des Losers 2, no one thought it was perfect.

"How could she possibly think that that would work?" Beth asked.

"She doesn't have to think it would work. Once it's her idea, she won't care!" Leshawna said angrily.

"I don't like how Cora had her eyes on Taylor..." Lindsay said.

"If she tries anything, I'll break her legs for you when she gets here, Lindsay girl!" Leshawna said, shaking a fist at the television.

As soon as Courtney started her fake flirting, the room groaned.

"That was like, so terrible!" Katie said.

"Agreed!" Sadie said.

"She's gonna get it..." Leshawna punched her palm.

* * *

The contestants all gasped as it suddenly went dark.

A loud fart was heard and everyone glared in the direction of the sound.

"The dark as my witness, that was _not_ me!" Owen said.

The plane them began a nosedive and everyone began to shriek in terror again until it somehow managed to land safely.

Except for Owen.

"Three, two, one and you're back!" Alejandro snapped his fingers and the chubby teen stopped screaming.

"Looks like I'm over my flying thing, huh?" Owen said, relieved.

"Looks like I owe you five bucks!" Duncan said to Alejandro, who looked on, smirking.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: "**My uncle Julio is a hypnotist. Manipulating runs in the family. And that wasn't the... _only _post-hypnotic suggestion I gave Owen." He chuckled.

* * *

"Everyone, welcome to the coolest, extra-terrestrial-iest place in the world! Area... 52!" Chris exclaimed, introducing the next destination to them.

"52? Area _51 _is where all the cool alien stuff is!" Gwen pointed out.

"The show's so broke, we have to fake an Area now?" Duncan mocked.

"Nope. This really is Area 52. And _that's_ Area 51..." Chris pointed out an extremely large rock which had an eerie glow about it.

"We're just inside the border. Well all of us except Duncan!"

And with that, Duncan was zapped with a red laser beam which shocked him and lifted him into the air.

"DUNCAN!" Gwen shouted in concern.

"Thanks for the laser show, Colonel." Chris talked into his walkie-talkie.

"It's good to have friends in Area 51 places." Chris commented unconcernedly.

When Courtney attempted to flirt with Tyler again everyone looked around at her, weirded out.

* * *

"Listen up, space cases! The 5-1 is _the _most tightly protected military base in _the world_. Which is why tonight's challenge is going to be so much fun!" Chris exclaimed joyfully.

The contestants all looked at him, mortified.

"For me, that is!"

"_We're going to die, aren't we?_" Heather thought.

"_I don't want to die yet! There are so many things I haven't gotten to..._" Gwen trailed off as she received a vision.

"_What is it?_" Bridgette asked.

"_I don't quite know. The vision wasn't all that clear, but I sense one of us in grave danger and not from Chris' sadism..._" Gwen trailed off as the instructions for the challenge were being explained.

"_What? Who? It could be any of us!_" Izzy asked the others.

"_Perhaps we'll find out when they're done there..._" Bridgette answered.

"But be careful! The warehouse is loaded with booby traps!" Chris continued.

* * *

"_Boobies..._" Harold said, in a daze.

Those present in the Playa Des Losers 2 lounge were very engrossed in the show.

"This challenge looks like fun! I wish I didn't get crushed by a plane so I could go get me some alien stuff that the U.S. government confiscated!" Izzy exclaimed.

"So, Courtney, huh?" Alejandro stopped back to nudge Tyler.

The room became silent.

When the jock merely looked at him puzzled, Alejandro continued.

"She just can't stop flirting with you!"

"Flirting- with me?" Tyler said at the same time that Lindsay exclaimed: "_That_ was flirting?" she said, puzzled.

"It's bad flirting, but still flirting, all the same..." Bridgette muttered under her breath.

However, when she looked up, she noticed something startling.

"_Why the hell is Alejandro glowing black?_" she thought as she watched Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot trying to figure out how to get through the minefield.

"_Alejandro's not glowing..._" Lindsay said, puzzled.

"_Have your powers gone to your head?_" Heather snapped.

"_That's what I'd like to know..._" Izzy added.

"_You're not really one to talk, psycho..._" Gwen said. "_Are you sure you can see him glowing?_" she asked.

"_YES! Why can't anyone else?_" she exclaimed.

"_Maybe it's one of your powers? A new one that you didn't know about before? Ask Marissa or see if your Elemental Book has something that can help you. It's the best move for now!_" Gwen closed off the Link as Team Amazon was startled by the giant lizard and ran off in terror.

"That lizard thing sure was hella creepy! That sure is another time that I'm glad I'm not in the competish no more!" Leshawna exclaimed.

"Says you!" Izzy replied. "Giant lizards, aliens and the best part, bombs! Izzy go loco for boom-boom! _**Hehehehe!**_" Izzy cackled as she held up a lighted bomb.

As soon as everyone looked up to see what she was holding, they ran screaming in terror.

Izzy rolled her eyes as the fuse went lower and finally reached the edge of the bomb. "Sillies! Can't you tell the difference between a real bomb and a fake o..." she trailed off as it exploded, leaving her covered in soot, ash and her hair sticking straight up into the air.

"Ha, ha, oopsie..." Izzy said. "Guess I'm going to have to ask Brainzilla and Explosivo for help on this one..."

Lindsay was the first to peek back into the room.

"If that was a fake bomb I don't want to know what a real one would have been like..." she said, voice quavering.

Everyone else who decided to peek in just then nodded fervently in agreement.

* * *

"Since when do lizards fly?" Heather asked.

Gwen had noticed the explosion that sent the lizard flying as well as being able to sense different energy levels in the ground, some much stronger and sharper than others.

"_Uh-oh..._" Gwen thought.

"_Uh-oh what?_" Heather thought back, looking at her sharply.

"_**We're in a minefield!**_" Gwen exclaimed.

"You could have gotten us killed before-" Sierra stopped herself. "Way to lead, _New Heather!_"

* * *

**Confessional Closet**

**Gwen:** "_New Heather?_"

* * *

After Team Amazon finished singing 'Boyfriend Kisser' and dodging the landmines at the same time and safely reached the warehouse, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

"Wicked! We beat Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot here!" Gwen exclaimed.

"More like Team Chris is Really Really Really Really UGLY!" Heather grumbled.

"I beg to differ on that, pasty."

Duncan and his team came strolling casually through the doors.

Courtney began to flirt with Tyler again and this time all the Keepers, eliminated or not got this message from Lindsay throughout the link: "_How dare Cora flirt with my Taylor! She's nothing but a ..._"

"_Woah, those are the same words you used for Heather! Lindsay's really mad!_" Izzy commented, but was soon interrupted by Chris' voice.

"Welcome to the black box warehouse. Finding a functioning alien artifact in here is gonna be a little like finding a needle in a haystack." Chris started over the intercom.

"A haystack with a BlackOps security system... which I set off when I hacked into this P.A. My bad..."

As soon as the alarms went off, everyone ran screaming in different directions.

* * *

Heather was digging through the box of broken alien junk humming to herself.

"_Don't call my name, don't call my name, __**Alejandro**__- wait, why the hell am I humming that awful song?_" she thought to herself before emerging with a metal disc.

"More broken junk. _Fantastic._" She grumbled before throwing it away.

And proceeded to grumble even more as it started to fly of its own accord.

"Hmm... what's this?" she thought, going over to the portal and poking it.

The next thing she knew she was stuck halfway through it.

"_Huh? What's this I'm seeing?_" Heather thought.

She saw the image of a place that looked like a combination of something straight out of a tropical island magazine and the super modern technology she had seen in Alma and Spectra. The houses and other buildings were brightly coloured and the people there wore clothing from all sorts of eras from items similar to the ones she saw on Alma and Spectra to clothing...

"_Not seen since the 19__th__ centu- woah!_" she was thrown off as Courtney pulled her out, throwing her into a bunch of crates.

"_What the hell was that?_" she thought to herself.

"What were you waiting for! I am covered in space snot! Ugh! At least the stupid thing is intact!" Heather grumbled before Courtney toppled it over and muttered fake apologies.

Heather fumed. She couldn't believe what she was hearing!

* * *

Checking in with Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot now, Tyler and Alejandro were running around trying to find an artifact to carry back. They ran past the large metal container only to hear Owen's screams from inside.

"_Leave the big, fat, awful-smelling repulsive oaf in there!_" Alejandro thought as he kept on running.

The Latino teen grew quickly annoyed when Tyler insisted on staying behind to save Owen.

"Tyler, there's no time! _Well, actually there is, but I could care less about Owen... _We have to find an artifact! One's not just going to fall out of..." he trailed off as the glowing box fell, bounced off Tyler's head with a crunch and landed in his hands.

"I stand corrected. Let's hope it..." the box glowed.

He stood there in shock as two aliens merged from it, watched in amusement as one shocked Tyler and screamed out in terror and pain as the other began to shock _him_.

* * *

Gwen was alone, running around amongst the piles and piles of boxes before bumping into Duncan.

"Hey! It's good to..." Duncan started.

"Oh hey! I can't believe..." Gwen started.

"You go first!" Duncan said.

Gwen took a deep breath before appearing with an expression on her face which clearly stated that she really did like him.

"Okay. The kiss was awesome. Even though now everyone on my team thinks I'm the new Heather. _Even Heather!_ But I can see that Courtney's ridiculous flirting is getting to you, so if you've changed your mind about our-" she was cut off as Duncan kissed her.

"_Woah._" She thought.

"Was that just to shut me up?"

"Not entirely."

"Why don't we just... let things happen. No pressure, no planning, _no pookums_. Okay?" Gwen asked.

"See? That there is why I like you."

"_Awww!_" Lindsay and Izzy cooed.

"_You guys are so cute together!_" Lindsay said.

"_And I think that he really likes you!_" Bridgette added.

"_Uh huh. I approve entirely of my Gothic friend's new boyfriend!_" Izzy declared.

"_Oh can it!_" Gwen snapped, but with a smile behind her words.

"_But..._" Bridgette said. "_He may like you, but I still don't like or trust him._" She said, hesitantly. "_Be careful around him!_" she warned.

"_I hear you._" Gwen cut her out the Link.

She and Duncan looked up to see the disc that Heather released earlier flying above them.

Duncan began to run off but Gwen tripped him up.

With a laugh, she told him not to get eliminated.

"Same to you!" He said, love struck.

* * *

Duncan walked back to his team, only to witness Alejandro and Tyler being shocked by aliens.

"What's this? A double date?" Duncan asked sarcastically.

"_I must remember to ask Radcliffe to give him a particularly long and painful death as well!_" Alejandro muttered darkly as he accepted Duncan's help.

The next thing he knew, he felt his head collide with something hard.

"_Some help he is..._" he muttered again.

"Oh no! The aliens stole my memory! And styled my hair!" Owen exclaimed as he emerged from the metal container wearing a green version of a mullet wig and makeup like The Joker's.

"And did your makeup..." Tyler added.

Even though he had an alien attached to him that refused to budge, Alejandro found himself getting more and more irritated by the overweight teen's rambling.

What really made him snap was the repeated use of his loathed nickname.

"_That's it! Time to use Uncle Julio's mind control trick again!_"

"Three two one and... _revenge._" He snapped his fingers.

Owen snapped his underwear above his head and began to sing 'Take Me out to the Ball Game' in a high-pitched voice.

Everyone there watched weirded out, even the alien. Except for Alejandro himself of course.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **He was laughing hysterically, kicking his legs in the air, his eyes watering. He soon stopped to address the camera.

"Forgive me for my raucous laughter, but hey, I would bet you all are laughing like this too!"

He continued to laugh even more.

* * *

At Playa Des Losers 2 once again, despite Alejandro being responsible for it, many there were laughing at Owen's hypnotism as well.

"Now I gotta admit, that was funny!" Eva was laughing almost as raucously as Alejandro himself was.

"Sorry, Big O, but I've got to agree with Eva on this one! _Aahaha!_" Izzy cackled.

"Is anyone else creeped out by this and not amused?" Noah asked.

"I don't find it all that funny either, Noah." Bridgette said.

"Neither do I, Bridgie!" Geoff exclaimed, frowning at Alejandro on the screen as he moved with Duncan to carry a fainted Owen out.

"I mean, suppose he uses that on anyone else!" Bridgette added.

Gwen on screen was showing the glowing box to her teammates.

"Guys! One working alien artifact, totally intact. Ta-da!"

Courtney and Sierra humphed.

"_Come on you two. Evil Jerkface's team already has an artifact! Hurry up or you're going to lose!_" Bridgette urged them.

"_Save it for First Class Gwen. Let's go!_" Heather indicated the exit and began to run towards it.

No one else said much until Tyler got caught in one of the land mines which sent him catapulting into the air and smashing hard into the ground.

Lindsay, DJ, Katie, Sadie, Beth and Bridgette screamed in horror.

"_Wimps!_" Eva muttered.

"Taylor! Is he going to be all right?" Lindsay asked, almost in tears.

"Judging by the fact that he's still alive, I'd say yes!" Leshawna exclaimed.

"What? No!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"Look at that! He's more concerned that the artifact got destroyed than the fact that Tyler could have died!" Leshawna exclaimed angrily.

There was more angry muttering as Courtney purposely tripped up Gwen who was carrying the glowing box.

When Chris reached out and caught the box however, everyone burst out cheering.

* * *

Heather sat next to Courtney, reading her Elemental Book until she was bothered by the constant scratching sounds of the C.I.T.'s pencil.

"_Oh boy. How long will the agony last?_" Heather moaned to herself before slamming the book shut and putting it aside.

"I want Gwen gone too, but strategy is key here, Courtney! Right now, we have to focus on picking off the guys! Hello, are you even listening to me?" Heather asked indignantly as Courtney continued to ignore her.

Gwen, who had also been reading her Elemental Book peeked around at them.

"Gothie's going down, Gothie's going down! _Gothie is going down!_"

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather:** "Izzy, you have been replaced..."

* * *

"_I beg to differ on that, Heather. Courtney is officially crazier than me!_" Izzy exclaimed.

Heather rolled her eyes and closed off the Link.

As Heather emerged out of the Confessional, she bumped into Alejandro who was just going in to cast his vote.

"Strange how I keep bumping into you here isn't it?" he asked.

Heather rolled her eyes again and began to walk away before Alejandro put his hand on her shoulders, stopping her.

"Get your evil hands off me!" she exclaimed, turning around to glare at him.

"Por favor! Usted sabe que disfrutar tener mis manos fuertes y varonil, en el!" Alejandro gave her a flirtatious smile.

"Y será disfrutar de cortarles fuera si no obtiene fuera de mí!" Heather replied angrily.

"Wow! Feisty! _Me gusta!_" **(1)** Alejandro teased.

Heather shook his hands off and made to slap him in the face but he quickly dodged it and dashed into the Confessional.

"COWARD!" she called out after him as she left.

* * *

Gwen hid in the shadows of the elimination room, watching and really concerned for her new boyfriend's safety.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Tyler was leaving but that was almost soon followed by a squeal of fright when Courtney suddenly stormed in and started shouting and screaming at everyone, declaring that she would have her revenge on her and Duncan in no uncertain terms.

Gwen winced when Courtney threw Tyler out of the plane.

"_Jen, please let Cora get here next so I can kick her butt for that!_" Lindsay said, with uncharacteristic venom in her thought.

"_I will if I survive Courtney's revenge..._" Gwen thought back.

This was going to be a long ride, wasn't it?

* * *

_**Translations for this chapter:**_

**(1)** "Please. You know you enjoy having my strong, manly hands on you!"

"And I will enjoy chopping them off if you don't get them off me!"

"Wow! Feisty! I like that!"

* * *

Don't forget to _**REVIEW!**_


	15. Picnic at Hanging Dork

I think a lot of people are going to like this chapter, tee, hee... :D

**Disclaimer: **See Chapter 1.

* * *

It was a very uncomfortable situation in First Class for Gwen indeed.

Being seated beside Courtney and across from Sierra at the window seat did _not _bode well for an escape attempt if any of them decided to try anything.

"_Times like this that I wish I could borrow Tiana's powers. They'd never be able to hit me then!_" she thought. "_I could just go intangible!_"

"_Well, you can't, so you just have to do your best, Gwen. Remember, I'm still rooting for you!_" Vesta said.

Then there was the fact that both the purple-haired girl and the C.I.T. were glaring at her and Courtney was repeatedly tapping her fingers on the arm rest of her seat.

When she heard a loud crunching sound therefore, it startled her.

When it only turned out to be Cody munching on cookies, she looked slightly relieved.

Elsewhere in First Class, Heather was taking a generous helping of chocolate chip cookies.

"_Mmm... Chocolate. A girl's best friend! Besides diamonds, of course!_" she thought and sighed happily.

"_Heather!_" Deanna called out.

Heather almost dropped her cookie.

"_What was that for!_?" Heather exclaimed.

"_I know that the competition is getting tough right now, but you must keep you head in! I know you don't like Gwen but right now she's your only dependable ally. Work on that!_"

As soon as Deanna finished speaking, Bridgette came through. "_Heather, you need to get Gwen calm! I can feel her negative emotions all the way over here! I talked to Marissa about it and she talked to Vesta about it and she said it would not be good for her power wise! Seriously, calm her down!_"

"_Okay, okay, fine!_" Heather took up another cookie. "_The things I do to win **and** keep Gwen's powers from exposing us all..._"

She walked to Gwen's seat and offered her a cookie. "_Chocolate always calms me down. Why don't you try-_"

She watched in mild surprise as Courtney took it away and crushed it to bits.

"_Oh well, can't say I didn't try..._" she said, walking back to get another for herself.

* * *

Heather was walking on her way to the cargo hold, cookie in one hand, Elemental Book in the other.

Suddenly she was pulled off her feet, dropping both objects she carried in surprise.

"Hey!" she was almost ready to transform until she realized who she was with inside the pitch-dark room.

"Okay. We vote out Gwen next. Agreed?" Courtney asked.

"Not if you're going to try and make us lose on purpose again!" Heather exclaimed.

"**I did no such thing! **But on the off chance that our winning streak _does _end, I wanna guarantee that Pasty McJerkface goes home first. _Okay?_"

"Sure! _If _you give me a guarantee that you won't vote _me_ off instead."

"Deal!"

Heather went outside, retrieved her Elemental Book and then went into the Confessional.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **She sat there with her fingers crossed. "_Of course_ my fingers were crossed! It's one of the advantages of making deals in the dark!"

* * *

"If I can get Heather on our side, the three of us can vote out Courtney!" Gwen exclaimed.

"If anyone goes, it's Sierra!" Cody replied.

Gwen was putting an idea she had into motion. "_This isn't going to be easy but I need to get Heather to join us! It's the only way that Courtney would go first! I hate to use Cody's crush on me like this but it's the only way..._"

"Oh, Sierra will go. _After_ Courtney." Gwen insisted.

"She stole all my underwear! Down to my swim trunks!" Cody exclaimed.

Gwen looked weirded out at this.

"She won't vote you out but Courtney is voting against me for sure!"

"Relax babe. The Code-man's on it!"

"_Aye-yi-yi! Sierra really likes him a lot, doesn't she?_" Izzy said.

"_Sandy really creeps me out, Jen!_" Lindsay said.

"_Doesn't she creep out everyone?_" Heather said.

"_Taking a crush way too far is what she does..._" Bridgette agreed.

"_Enough you guys! Can I have my head back please?_" Gwen closed off the Link and looked around, only to notice that Cody was gone.

"Wha? Where did Cody go?" she asked aloud.

"Really should pay more attention to your surroundings Goth Girl!" Heather said, walking past with yet another cookie in one hand and her Elemental Book.

"_These things really are good!_" she thought happily.

* * *

In Loser Class Alejandro sat pondering his next move.

"_Playing this game is like a game of chess. Logic and manipulation of the pieces is needed. And in this case my fellow players and the Keepers are the pieces..._"

He stood up and looked around, kicking away the rat that sniffed at his precious boots.

"Loser class again? Pathetic!"

He turned to Duncan and Owen the only two remaining members of Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot beside himself.

"Men, we must rise from the ashes and ignite the flames of victory!" Alejandro said.

"I'm all for starting fires!" Duncan said.

"_You won't be when I'm finished with you!_" Alejandro thought.

"The Amazons are only powerful because they have both Courtney and Heather. We need to break them apart, but how?" he asked.

"Ooh, ooh, ooh! Act like you're crushing on Heather and she'll go home same as Bridgette and Leshawna!" Owen suggested.

Duncan perked up. "Bridgette _and _Leshawna? I thought I was the only guy that snagged double gold at the Babe Olympics!"

Alejandro thought quickly to come up with an answer that would satisfy him.

"_Uh..._ yes! I was... truly fond of both. Sadly the fates were against us. I suppose I could attempt a false seduction, but it goes against the gentleman's code..." he said.

"There's a code for that crud?" Duncan raised his eyebrow.

"And if I seduce Heather, Courtney will remain unaffected! If only we could weaken both at once..." Alejandro continued.

"Easy! Heather's kinda into you, right? So... seduce Courtney!" Duncan suggested.

"Of course! If I flirt with Courtney, it will distract both of them from the game at hand and one will surely vote the other out! Brilliant idea Duncan!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"_Too bad you won't last that much longer either..._" he thought.

"All competitors please move to the common area to prep for landing!" Chris' voice came over the intercom.

"_Heh-heh. Now's the time to get the ball rolling..._" he smirked as he and his teammates headed out.

* * *

"Courtney, we need to talk..." Alejandro approached her in the common area.

"Um. Whatever Duncan said about me, it isn't true."

"Believe me. I never listen to a word he says. In fact, _I tried to vote him off!_" Alejandro whispered the last part.

"Really?" Courtney asked in surprise.

"Any man who cannot perceive your true worth is a fool. What I wouldn't give for a chance to-"

Alejandro paused for good effect.

"Forgive me. I have said too much." Alejandro walked away, hiding his smirk.

Heather noticed this and decided to investigate.

"Are you all right?" Heather asked her in an annoyed tone.

"Never better." Courtney smiled.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"Al and Courtney? No chance. He's up to something."

* * *

"G'day mates and welcome to Australia!"

"_Okay, it's official. Only Australians can do Australian accents..._" Gwen thought.

"_Agreed!_" the other Keepers said in unison.

"I call today's challenge the Marathon of _Death!_"

"_Anytime Chris mentions the word death, I get the chills..._" Heather thought.

The contestants stood there listing to Chris' instructions for the challenge growing more worried by the second.

"And yes- I said emus. Bring 'em in boys!"

Everyone stood there stunned as a pair of interns brought the emus in.

"After all, it's supposed to be a challenge! Now GO!"

* * *

After trying to run after his emu for a while, Alejandro noticed that Courtney was _supposedly _having troubles with hers.

"_Time to score me some brownie points!_" he said, leading the one he had already caught over to her.

"Allow me to be of assistance!" he said, effortlessly lifting her atop the emu.

Courtney sat there, glaring down at him.

"Oh, forgive me. I know you don't need my help. _You need nothing._"

"Well, I wouldn't say that..." Courtney smiled coyly at him.

"_Really?_ Then I hope I can be of use."

He easily caught another emu and leapt on top of it.

"Ladies first."

He smirked as Courtney and her emu moved off.

"Looking good, D!"

Despite the fact that Duncan was on the ground, trying to wrestle down an emu that kept pecking him on the head and thus did _not_ look good, Heather shouted to him anyway.

Heather rode past Alejandro, smirking.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"Heather is a masterful adversary indeed! She's never used flirtation before! But that could not have been true passion in her eyes... could it?"

* * *

"What's with Heather? She's just acting like she's just realized you're alive!" Gwen walked over to her new boyfriend.

Duncan shrugged. "Who knows? She's probably just plotting to kill me!"

"_I somehow wouldn't doubt that..._" she thought.

Meanwhile since Heather and Courtney had already snagged their emus, they had already gained some distance.

"_Come on!_ Pick up the pace!" Heather was growing short tempered with their mode of transportation.

"It's not me, it's the emu!" Courtney exclaimed.

"It has the brain the size of a walnut. _Take charge!_"

"So, can I ask you something? Just between us. Are you and Alejandro... you know... a _thing?_"

Courtney's question almost caught Heather off guard.

"_What? **No!** He wishes!_"

"_Sounds like **you** wish in this case!_" Izzy butted in.

"_Oh shut up!_" Heather cut her out.

"Oh, okay then, perfect!"

When Alejandro came up and started to flatter Courtney again, Heather grew even more suspicious.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather:** "Next time the Amazons lose, Courtney is gone. And not for making go-goo eyes at Alejandro. As if I cared about that. You saw the way she was riding her emu! She is purposely trying to lose! _Again!_"

* * *

At Playa Des Losers 2, everyone was keenly watching Duncan and Cody's conflict.

"Hey pipsqueak!" Duncan charged at Cody.

Cody, who was half asleep on his emu after two days of riding (naturally!) bolted up, noticed the angry kangaroo in front of him and shouted in terror.

"Here comes the pain!"

"You don't know the half of it!" Cody made a U-turn and before Duncan could realize what was going on, he was being beaten up by an angry kangaroo.

The eliminated contestants burst out in laughter.

"Next time I see him, I must thank him personally for that..." Justin said.

"Agreed. Duncan has been such a bully for the past two seasons for too long! Gosh, it's time he got some of his own medicine, courtesy of my fellow nerd! Nerds unite!" Harold exclaimed.

The Keepers present looked at one another.

"I don't usually condone violence, but I've got to say I agree with Harold..." Bridgette said.

"_You're right Barbie! Drew hurts people way too much for my liking!_" Lindsay added, helping Tyler with some snacks. Ever since he had been badly injured in the previous episode, Lindsay had taken to being his nursemaid.

Bridgette physically raised an eyebrow at the Air Keeper at this.

"_But Bridgette's not a doll, Lindsay... Anyway, I bet I could take on that kangaroo! He wouldn't last long against me!_" Izzy exclaimed.

The room burst out laughing again as Alejandro came up behind Chris and Chef, startling them.

Alejandro came up to Courtney and flirted with her again and an emu behind them vomited.

"Gee. Looks like Al has the power of making emus regurgitate." Noah said.

Katie and Sadie who sat beside him looked puzzled. Noah saw this and sighed.

"It means he made them vomit..."

"Ohh!" they said in unison.

"You get back here! One more round! I didn't hear no bell!" Duncan on screen shook his fist at the kangaroo who promptly turned around and used its fist on his jaw-to the sound of a bell.

Everyone laughed at this.

"_Wait, that's a new tactic..._" Bridgette commented as she saw Heather's attentions to Duncan.

"_Believe me; I'm not interested in that skeeze._"Heather said disgustedly.

"_Ah. I see you're doing it to mess with a certain someone then!_" Bridgette commented.

"_Alejandro, right?_" Izzy burst in.

"_Who else?_" Heather snapped.

"_Hmm... I don't know... Jen?_" Lindsay asked, slight anger behind her voice.

"_Please. I've already done that once to her. If I wanted to hurt her again, I'd be more original than that, Lindsidiot..._" Heather snapped, trailing off as she and Gwen glared at each other, the latter having seen Heather's earlier actions.

"Awww... My poor big O!" Izzy said out loud as she saw him and the emus struggling to get to Hanging Rock after everyone else had arrived.

"Wow, Izzy you need to tell your ex-boyfriend to knock off the pounds. I mean he has _**two **_emus supporting him and _**both**_ are tired!" Bridgette said to the Fire Keeper.

"_**Ex**_-boyfriend? Izzy does **not** remember a breakup happening!" Izzy exclaimed in genuine surprise.

"Um, yeah, you did break up with him in Jamaica! Remember?" Lindsay said.

"Really? The aliens must have wiped my memory or controlled my mind! I must fix that when my big teddy bear gets back here! **I wonder if he'll like exploding chocolate...**" Izzy said, holding up a chocolate bar that had a fuse attached to one end.

Everyone else screamed and ran out of the room in terror as the chocolate exploded, leaving a chocolate covered Izzy in its wake.

"Oh well. Guess I'll have to make more!" Izzy exclaimed.

"NO!" everyone else shouted, startling her.

"Okay, okay, sheesh! No exploding chocolate!" Izzy said, beginning to lick the chocolate off herself.

"No exploding _**anything!**_" Lindsay wailed.

"Nonsense! You can never have too many explosives!" Izzy exclaimed.

Bridgette face palmed before receiving a message from Marissa.

"_Bridgette, just letting you know that Hasim is coming for you guys soon. You'll be going to Wispera today!_"

"_Okay. It would be a welcome distraction from all the drama going on now..._" Bridgette replied, glancing at the television.

"_Believe me, you haven't seen drama yet!_" Marissa chuckled slightly as she closed the link.

Bridgette frowned. What did Marissa mean by that?

* * *

"So Heather, I was wondering..." Gwen started.

"I'm not into Duncan." Heather answered.

"Well, that's reassuring. Anyway Cody and I were talking about voting out Courtney next and..."

"I'm in."

Gwen went wide eyed at this.

"Good talk! _Although I must wonder why you agreed so quickly..._"

"_Are you kidding me? I don't like you, but I like winning and Courtney is trying to lose **on purpose!**_"

Soon the second part of the challenge began.

Despite the fact that none of the other Amazons liked Courtney, they still winced when she went over the cliff and bounced back, _hard._

"You got this, Gwen!"

Despite Duncan cheering for her, Gwen couldn't help but feel worried. After all, she had to jump over a cliff and she couldn't use magic to help herself on live television if something went wrong!

As she neared the sheep below her, she screamed.

And began screaming even more when she discovered that she had brought up a _cactus_, not a sheep.

Heather snickered.

When Cody was the first to successfully bring up a sheep, everyone looked surprised.

"_Who knew the nerd had it in him?_" Heather and Gwen thought in unison.

"Quick! Start shearing!" Heather led the way, turning on the electric shearer as she went.

And then _of course_ Chris would decide to make them sing and shear sheep at the same time...

After the song, Heather felt as if she couldn't possibly hate Courtney more.

* * *

At Playa Des Losers 2, most of those watching were very upset at Alejandro and Duncan's scheming.

"Courtney's coming along... but I still don't have her trust." Alejandro said.

"No problem. Just follow my lead." Duncan said.

Sierra, Courtney and Gwen turned to look as Alejandro and Duncan started to fake quarrel.

"Not cool man, not cool!" Duncan shoved Alejandro.

"But she's your ex! And I cannot help the way I feel about her!" Alejandro exclaimed.

Courtney on screen as well as everyone in the lounge gasped.

"Wow, Duncan's really becoming a jerk!" Geoff exclaimed.

"Like you're one to talk!" Eva said. "You were a big one in Total Drama Action!"

"Maybe because I was full of myself, not because I wanted to mess with people's heads and hurt their feelings! I apologized for that, didn't I?" Geoff argued.

"_He wouldn't._" Bridgette thought as she watched, putting a hand around her boyfriend's shoulder as she did.

"_He would..._" Izzy thought.

"Well figure it out or you're gonna feel a whole lot of pain!" Duncan shook a fist at the Latino teen.

When Bridgette saw the shocked look on Gwen's face, she began to 'talk' to her.

"_Gwen, you're not going to like this, but I'm going to tell you anyway. Duncan's a total jerk. He really does like you, but he hates Courtney this much! He and Alejandro are doing this to mess with Courtney and Heather!_"

"_Oh, is he?_" Gwen thought angrily. "_I'm going to have to have a l**ittle **chat to him about that, won't I?_"

Alejandro and Duncan smirked at each other.

"This one's for Cody!" everyone saw Sierra exclaim as she saw the crestfallen look on her obsession's face after they once again failed to shear a sheep with the Amazon logo on it.

And they winced when Sierra went crashing straight through the ground since she didn't have a harness on.

"Even I have to admit, that would hurt!" Eva exclaimed.

"That would hurt _anyone_, including you, Iron Woman." Noah commented.

"_I want to try that!_" Izzy thought.

"_No you don't! The only two people we know who could possibly survive that fall are Tiana, since she can just become intangible and Heather since she might be able to merge with it!_" Bridgette thought back.

"_I'd call it, EXTREME FALLING!_" Izzy thought gleefully.

Bridgette and Lindsay looked at each other with worried looks on their faces.

* * *

"Rise up, men! No surrender, no defeat! Go Owen!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"_I hope the harness breaks and you fall to a painful death!_" he thought viciously.

When Alejandro and Duncan saw what he had brought up, they grew worried looks on their faces.

Weirded out now, Alejandro asked "How long until he realizes it's a dingo?" as he watched it get angrier at being plucked off the ground for no good reason.

"Three... two..."

And the dingo began to attack the overweight teen.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **He laughed so hard his eyes began to water. "Classic." He wiped the tears from his eyes.

* * *

"I've been thinking about the future..." Alejandro began to work on Courtney again.

"You have?" she asked, surprised.

"Yes. Tomorrow and the day after and even the day after that."

"I'm aware of what the future is..."

"Not when it comes to me."

Courtney glanced over at Duncan, who immediately began to fake cry.

Gwen, watching this began to get upset and had a sudden flash of shoving him over the cliff, _without_ a harness of course.

"We're trying to win, remember?" Heather urged her on.

While shaving the sheep, she got so upset, that she **accidentally** sent mini energy blades though her hand, which felt like sharp stings to the sheep, which Heather promptly had to hold down to stop it from moving away.

"_Gwen..._" Heather warned.

"Claimed he wasn't into her anymore. Humph! What is his deal?" she grumbled as she finished the job.

"Urgh! No logo!"

Heather immediately harnessed herself and went over for another sheep.

While the Earth Keeper was down, Gwen, feeling dejected was approached by Cody.

"Need a shoulder? I've got two!"

"Maybe you were right. Duncan can be a real jerk sometimes!" she said, sounding as if she wanted to cry.

"_Gwen..._" Bridgette began to send a calming feeling through the Link, but the Energy Keeper cut it off.

"I know, I know. What can I do to make you feel better?" Cody asked.

"Can you make the pain go away?" Gwen asked.

"If by pain, you mean Courtney, consider it gone!"Cody exclaimed.

* * *

**Confessional Closet**

**Gwen: **"I've got Heather _and _Cody. Courtney is toast!" She punched her palm.

* * *

"Oh... Alejandro!"

Courtney was officially wooed by the evil Latino teen.

"Allow me to be of assistance." He said. "_To your defeat..._" he added mentally.

"No. You can't help me win. I couldn't bear it! I _won't _allow it!" Courtney turned and began to walk away.

"If I do not help, you are sure to lose." Alejandro said in a grave tone.

Alejandro listened incredulously as Courtney explained that she _wanted_ to lose.

"It would be my... honour to help you achieve that noble goal!"

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"She trusts me! And she _wants _to lose! It is a thrilling combination! What a woman!"

* * *

"Quick, it's my turn! Throw me the bungee cord!" Cody exclaimed, running to the edge of the cliff as Duncan brought up another sheep.

Duncan smirked evilly at this.

"THINK FAST!" he shouted, throwing the dingo at the techno-geek, who shouted in terror as he jumped off the cliff, having barely fastened the bungee cord. The dingo missed him by mere inches and plummeted to the ground below.

* * *

**Confessional Closet**

**Duncan:** He shook a fist at the camera. "Drat. I missed! I'll get you next time, geek!"

* * *

"Victory is at hand!"

Alejandro just sheared off the last bit of wool covering the sheep his team had. "Behold!"

He hoisted the sheep into the air.

"Team I'm Totally Smoking Hot wins!" Chris announced.

Duncan glanced over at Team Amazon. Courtney was standing next to a sad looking Gwen, making slashing motions across her neck.

"Aw, crud..." Duncan grumbled.

* * *

As Team Amazon sat in the elimination room before Chris came in, Gwen and Heather received their telepathic messages from their predecessors.

"_Gwen!_"

The Goth almost jumped.

"_Still not used to this yet, I see?_" Vesta said, chuckling slightly.

"_Anyway, Hasim is coming for you to take you to Wispera to meet Alyssa and President Hunter, so cheer up! You'll get a little time away from the competition! Oh and I saw what happened today with the sheep. Try a little harder to keep you powers under wraps, please?_"

"_Yep. Because I'm sure you wouldn't be upset if you saw that your boyfriend was supposedly not over his ex-girlfriend..._" Gwen grumbled.

"_I've been watching it and trust me, he isn't into her. I will explain later. Or perhaps your eliminated friends can._"

"_If you say so..._" Gwen closed the Link when Chris entered the room and glance over at Heather who apparently had just finished talking to Deanna.

* * *

"So?" Courtney whispered to Heather.

"Definitely." Heather reassured her.

"We're talking about the same thing, right?"

"Yes. Voting off Gwen. Definitely."

"Just checking." Courtney gave her the thumbs up and leaned back, relaxed.

"It's been a tough day for many of you, but one of you is about to about to have the worst day of all." Chris started.

"Sierra, last to arrive, first to get injured."

"Courtney, slow with the emu, quick with the flirting!"

"Cody, a petty feud sent you spinning all the way here."

"Heather, not your most focused performance!"

"And Gwen! Duncan, really?"

"Let the voting begin! Cody, you're up first!" Cody got up and left to vote.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Cody:** He firmly stamped the passport and gave a salute to the camera.

**Heather: **She stamped her vote in, quite assured who she wanted gone would _definitely_ be gone.

**Gwen:** She casually dropped her passport onto the counter and stamped it.

**Courtney: **She showed Gwen's passport to the camera, growled and viciously attacked the passport with the stamp, over and over again until Chef had to haul her out. Even as he did, she still struggled to get a few more stamps in.

**Sierra: **She stamped the passport and winced as she realized that she did it with her injured arm.

* * *

Chef threw open the door.

"Okay. One vote for Courtney, one for Gwen."

Heather, sitting in between the two aforementioned girls glanced from one to the other as their name was called.

"A _second_ vote for Courtney. A _second_ for Gwen"

The two girls sat anxiously, waiting to see who would leave for good.

"And the last vote is for..." Gwen clenched her fists and Courtney crossed her fingers.

"COURTNEY!" Chris shouted.

Chef threw the parachute at her, knocking her over.

"WHAT?" Courtney shrieked.

She turned to Heather. "**How could you! You said you'd vote for Gwen!**" Courtney shouted.

"Correction: I said I'd vote for Gwen if you _**wouldn't**_ try to make us lose on purpose again. You tried to lose again, so therefore, I voted for _**you.**_" Heather stood, smirking at the C.I.T.

Courtney fumed and tried to hit Heather, but with a display of strength and agility, she dodged the punch, grabbed Courtney by the arm with only one hand and threw her straight out the door, the C.I.T. shrieking in terror all the way.

"That was fun..." Heather said, dusting her hands off and walking off to Economy class.

"_I never thought I'd say this, but thank you Heather!_" Lindsay said.

"_No need to thank me. I've wanted to do that ever since the beginning of this season!_" Heather said, smirking.

"Wow." Chris back in the elimination as well as everyone else stared after her.

* * *

"I never knew you were so strong, Heather!" Sierra commented.

"What can I say? There are a lot of things that you don't know about me!" Heather smirked.

"I'd say!" Cody exclaimed.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going for a walk..." Heather went out to the common area.

"And I've got a bone to pick with a certain someone..." Gwen said, walking out behind her.

When they went out into the common area, they found Hasim, Bridgette, Lindsay and Izzy waiting for them.

"That was fast..." Gwen commented.

"I was in the area, visiting a friend." Hasim explained.

"What friend?" Heather raised an eyebrow. "I thought Radcliffe wiped out Earth's magic centuries ago!"

"That's what you think." Hasim smiled. "Magic is closer to you than you imagine..." He said as he teleported them away to another new world.

* * *

Well, I'm pleased with this chapter! Aren't you fellow Gwen fans pleased too? The storyline is officially twisted from here on out!

Read and review people! Comments, questions, criticisms and suggestions are all welcome!


	16. Wisperan Welcome

Wow, I got quite the response last chapter! Seems like the majority of you are pleased with my little twist!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"Welcome to Radnor, Wispera, ladies!"

The Keepers gasped.

They were inside a large, high-tech skyscraper with a balcony overlooking the city. When Heather looked outside she gasped. "Oh my gosh! This place is just like what I saw in Area 51!"

Outside, the environs looked like combination of something straight out of a tropical island magazine and the super modern technology she had seen before. Buildings and houses were brightly coloured. All in all, it reminded her of a futuristic Miami...

"Really?" Hasim turned to her with a curious expression.

"Can I see?" he asked her.

All the Keepers turned to look at him, puzzled expressions on their faces.

"How?" Heather asked.

"My powers center around knowledge and memories. I can copy your memory into mine. Best to do that before we step outside..."

Heather nodded.

Hasim shook his staff once or twice and the head of it began to glow a bright sunshine yellow.

Soon Heather's head was glowing the same shade. Shortly after that, Hasim's head began to glow as well. It soon faded away when Hasim shook his staff again.

"_Hmmm... A curious thing indeed. What would a teleporter be doing in the United States? Oh right, Colonel Warren might've put it there after we sent it over when it started covering people in that gunk anytime they used it..._ " He thought.

"It's fine. It was just a malfunctioning teleporter." Hasim said.

"What would one of those be doing on Earth?" Gwen said aloud.

"_And I wonder why Heather said nothing..._" she added telepathically turning to look at the Earth Keeper.

"_How was I supposed to know it was a teleporter? And besides, it was destroyed afterward. How would I have been able to prove it?_"

"Let's just say that magic is much closer to you than you thought it would be. Now we're going to head up to the top floor. You girls are going to be flying today so when we get up there, you'll have to transform. Since I cannot fly myself, I will be going beside you on a motorbike. I haven't ridden one in ages!" Hasim smiled.

The Keepers looked at each other incredulously. When would the wonders end?

Hasim chuckled at their expressions.

"Let's go, shall we?" he waved his staff and teleported them to the top of the building.

* * *

"Wow, how tall is this building?" Izzy asked in surprise.

The building was so tall that even with enhanced senses they could barely hear or see the people _way _below cheering for them.

"The Mona Building is 312 stories tall, the tallest in existence!" Hasim explained, jumping onto the waiting motorcycle and gesturing for the Keepers to follow him.

They looked at each other amazed and transformed to follow him.

When they got much closer to the people there, they all noticed that the people there were very bold in their sense of fashion.

The styles varied from Goth to Preppy, from clothes that went out ages ago on Earth to futuristic styles.

"Wisperans have always been very bold in their manner of dress." Hasim explained. "This is why they are, to put in a way you can understand- the Paris of the magical realms."

Gwen flew lower to the ground when she noticed something suspicious.

"_That's odd..._" she thought.

"_What is it?_" Bridgette had flown down to her level and was hovering slightly.

"_I could swear that I saw somebody familiar here!_" Gwen exclaimed, scanning the faces in the crowd.

"_Really?_ _Someone we know?_"

"_I'm not sure... Looks like someone I know, but I can't really place a finger on it!_" Gwen said, leaning her head on one hand as she paused to think.

She shook her head to clear it.

"_Let's get back up, shall we?_" Gwen sped up into the sky, catching up to the others. Bridgette hesitated for a moment before following.

* * *

Izzy was up in the air doing cartwheels around the others, her hands and feet on fire at the same time!"

"This is **fun!**" she shrieked.

The crowd below her cheered on her antics.

"**WATCH IT PSYCHO!**"

Izzy had almost set Heather's hair on fire.

Lindsay was bouncing around on spheres of air, squealing in delight.

"This **is** fun!" she exclaimed.

Hasim watched the girls with a smile before speaking. "Look ahead of you! We'll soon be at President Hunter's office!"

The girls stopped showing off their powers to the crowd and turned to look where he was pointing.

Ahead of them was a cluster of skyscrapers surrounded by high walls.

They could already see some people coming out of the buildings getting ready to welcome them.

"Seriously, these people really like their fancy buildings, don't they?" Heather commented.

"_Wait until you see Erendor..._" Hasim thought.

They soon came to a landing right outside the gates. Hasim leapt gracefully off the motorbike and led them in.

Once within the walls, they walked up to the nearest building and saw three people in the front of the crowd there. One was a petite woman with auburn hair in a bun wearing a dark green tailored suit and matching heels, the next was an Asian-looking man about a head taller than she was wearing a dark red suit and black shoes and the last was Alyssa, who towered over them both.

The petite woman spoke first.

"Welcome to Wispera, Keepers! My name is Aurora Hunter and I am the President of the wonderful planet on which you stand!" she said, smiling.

The man was next to introduce himself. "I am Lee Seondo, the Vice President of Wispera."

"And I'm Alyssa!" she said energetically, practically bouncing on her heels as she went to shake each Keeper's hand.

"She's excited..." Gwen remarked to Hasim. "Is she always like this?"

"Most of the time. Alyssa is a very vivacious person. Nothing ever seems to get her down. In fact, I think I've seen her sad only once in all of the centuries I've known her!" Hasim answered.

"Was she ever like this with the other Keepers?" Lindsay asked.

Hasim paused for a moment. "Well, maybe she's just a _little_ more excited for you five." Hasim held his fingers about an inch apart as he said this.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Let's get inside!" President Hunter gestured for them to follow, which they did after detransforming.

* * *

As the Keepers stepped inside, they walked along an extremely long corridor, the crowd dispersing as they went and were soon led into another room, one with a large, domed roof.

They noticed that several different portraits of several different men and women were on either side of them.

Glancing back at the Keepers and seeing their curious expressions, Alyssa explained.

"This is the portrait hall. The ones on your left are former Presidents and the ones on your right are your Vice Presidents. I wonder why none of them are moving today though..." she pondered.

"Moving? What do you mean... moving?" Gwen asked.

Vice President Seondo spoke up. "When they feel like it, the portrait can come to life and speak to you." He explained.

"Why aren't they talking now?" Lindsay asked.

"Because we didn't feel like it then but we sure do now!"

The voice startled her as well as the other Keepers.

"Don't **do** that!" Lindsay squealed, putting a hand to her chest.

"Daniel, what did I say about startling guests?" President Hunter spoke sternly, turning to a portrait of a dark haired man dressed in Earth-style 19th century clothing.

"I didn't startle them! I was merely answering a question!"

The President rolled her eyes and sighed. "Hey everyone, WAKE UP!" she shouted.

All the portraits in the room began to stir.

"What's the big deal?"

"What's the ruckus?"

"Why _**the hell**_ did you wake us up!"

All the while the Keepers were looking incredulously around the room and at each other as they noticed all the portraits awakening.

"_Wow. So many things to get used to!_" Gwen commented.

"_This magical life is going to be a real crazy life!_" Izzy commented.

"_It's going to be really fascinating!_" Bridgette said.

"_This magical life is going to be really complicated!_" Lindsay said.

"_Wow, I never knew Lindsay knew such a big word!_" Heather commented snidely.

"_CAN IT HEATHER! Jeez, you're getting to be a real pain! Can't you cut it out with all the smartass remarks?_" Gwen said.

Heather for once actually shut up.

"Presidents and Vice Presidents of Wispera, meet the newest generation of Keepers." The President and Vice President said in unison.

The portraits immediately burst out in applause.

"Brilliant to meet you!"

"Welcome to Wispera, Keepers!"

"It's absolutely great to have you here!"

Each Keeper introduced themselves and gave a small demonstration of their element before they left.

* * *

"That was certainly an interesting experience!" Gwen commented.

"A lot of people say that when they enter any planet's portrait halls!" Hasim said.

"_**Any**_ planet's portrait halls?" Bridgette asked.

"Why yes! There are halls similar to this on all the other planets as well!" President Hunter said.

"Really?" Heather raised an eyebrow. "Why is it that when we went to Alma and Spectra we did not see theirs?"

"Probably because they did not make it a point to show you then. When you visit those worlds again you may see them!" VP Seondo spoke up.

They turned into another corridor and went straight up to a large mahogany door which opened as President Hunter came up to it.

She waved her hand and enough chairs appeared in the room for them.

"Welcome to my office!"

The part of the room behind her desk was made entirely of glass and they could see the city around them through it.

"So tell me..." The President plopped down into her chair.

"...The magical experience. What has it been like so far?"

"_Is everyone we meet going to ask us that?_" all the Keepers thought in unison.

"It certainly has been interesting, if not mind boggling, Madam President." Gwen said.

"I would think so. And please all of you; you can call me by my first name, Aurora." The President answered.

"The same goes for me. My name is Lee, not Vice President!"

"Okay then." Gwen and the others nodded.

"So, tell us about yourselves instead of sitting there all quiet! What is life like for you on Earth these days?" Alyssa asked.

"I don't mean this to be rude, but why are you asking us? You have Vesta, Marissa, Aideen, Deanna and Akari to ask, plus I'm pretty sure Hasim told us that all of you Immortals can teleport..." Gwen said.

"Ah, you are a smart one aren't you?" Alyssa said, undeterred. "You are a different generation and as such you would have grown up with different things and as such would see the world in a different way!"

Hasim looked at her mildly surprised. "If Nasira were here she would probably be surprised at how smart that statement sounded!" he said teasingly.

Alyssa rolled her eyes at this.

"I know that I cannot speak for the others but life can be a real pain sometimes. Especially with this stupid Total Drama series that we probably all regret coming on." Gwen said.

"Being on Total Drama is pure hell. I only wish I knew what I was signing up for when I sent in my audition tape..." Heather said.

"But there were some advantages I would say! After all, I met Geoff, DJ, Gwen and Leshawna!" Bridgette said with a smile.

"I met Tanner (Tyler!), Betsy (Beth!) and Lefonda (Leshawna!)" Lindsay said.

"I got me Big O, Eva and Noah, my best friends **forever!**" Izzy added.

"And what about you two?" Alyssa asked, turning to Heather and Gwen, who immediately started glaring at each other.

All three of the more experienced Empaths in the room shared a look. They could really feel the hatred between Gwen and Heather. Even Bridgette, to whom Empathy was new, could feel it.

"Maybe we should talk about something else..." Alyssa suggested, looking weary.

"Perhaps we should..." Hasim agreed.

"Well then, you've really done all you had to do here so why not feel free to explore the planet before you leave?" Aurora suggested.

"That's not a bad idea at all! Go on, have a good time!" Lee said with a smile.

"Let's go to my house!" Alyssa suggested.

Hasim shared a look with Aurora and Lee.

The Keepers noticed this and were puzzled. What was wrong with the idea of going to Alyssa's house?

* * *

"_Wow._" They all thought in unison as they walked around Alyssa's house.

Alyssa's home had a lovely, large garden in the front and part of a beach at the back.

Besides the basement, there was the ground floor and two other stories. And all of it was decorated in a whimsical fashion.

"I like this house!" Lindsay said.

"Why thank you, Lindsay! I thought you would." Alyssa smiled.

"Ooh! What's this?" Izzy was holding up a medium-sized mirror with an intertwining of ebony and ivory framing it.

When Alyssa turned around and saw Izzy holding it the way she was, she nearly lost her cheerful disposition.

"Put the mirror back where you found it. _**Now.**_" Alyssa said in a firm tone.

Izzy, looking quite startled put it back immediately.

"You still have that after all these centuries?" Hasim asked.

"How could I possibly throw _that_ out? You know how valuable it was to me then. Nothing has changed." Alyssa answered.

The Keepers were watching this puzzled. "_What could be so important about a mirror?_"

Alyssa, sensing their confusion guessed what they were wondering. "This mirror is extremely rare and took some very powerful magic to create. Only two of them, to my knowledge exist." She explained.

"Do you know the person who has the other one?" Gwen asked.

"Yep!" Alyssa and Hasim shared a look.

"_I hate feeling like I'm out of the loop!_" Gwen thought.

"And so do you." Alyssa said.

The Keepers shared a look.

"Anyway, I'm sure you don't want to hang around my living room all day, now do you? Let's go down to the basement!" she said, leading the way.

* * *

"What's with the colour scheme?" Heather asked, observing the dark pink with dark yellow striped wall.

"I like vibrant colours, as you can tell with my outfit..." Alyssa said, doing a little twirl.

"_Way too cheerful for my liking..._" Gwen thought.

"_Well, we do need an optimist in our lives, don't we?_" Bridgette pointed out. "_Seeing as we're going to be facing some mega evil Immortal person, right?_"

"_True..._" Gwen admitted.

"These are my journals. I like writing a lot, you see. These are _at least_ a millennium's worth of notes and stories and poems and such in them." Alyssa showed them a bookcase which went wall to wall and ceiling to floor on one side of the room.

"Wow. That's a lot of writing." Gwen said in a tone of awe.

"You are a writer yourself, I take it?" Alyssa asked sitting down in one of the chairs there.

"Yes, I am." Gwen sat across from her.

"Interesting. I too am also into the arts." Alyssa said.

"Now let's go onto the top floor, shall we? Even more of my interesting things are there!" Alyssa said, getting up.

She waved her hand and all of the Keepers disappeared with her in a flash of pink light.

Hasim had business to attend to nearby so he left in his signature flash of yellow light.

* * *

"Pink. Your signature spell colour is **pink...**" Heather was the first to speak when they reached the top level of Alyssa's house.

"That is what Nasira first said the first time we met centuries ago!" Alyssa said coolly.

"Why do I get the impression that you and Nasira are not on the best of terms?" Bridgette asked her.

"That is because we are not. Our personalities simply clash." Alyssa said simply.

"Moving along..." Alyssa waved her hand and a tiger appeared in the room.

The Keepers screamed in terror.

"Gets them every time!" Alyssa chuckled.

"What did that come from?" Bridgette asked, wide eyed.

"Why was there a tiger in the room just now?" Lindsay asked, breathing sharply.

"I made it appear. It was simply an illusion!" Alyssa said, chuckling. "Wow! I remember when I pulled that one on your predecessors! You had much better reactions than they did! In fact, Aideen darn well nearly set my house on fire!"

"I think you would've deserved that!" Heather said.

Alyssa rolled her eyes. "Not my fault you people can't take a joke. Sheesh."

"I guess some of us have different opinions on what is funny..." Heather grumbled.

"Oh come on guys! You gotta admit, that was funny!" Izzy said, joining Alyssa's laughter.

"Hold up a minute. I just noticed something." Gwen spoke up. Everyone else immediately quieted.

"Alyssa, I thought you were only an Empath! Why is it that you were able to create an illusion?" she asked.

"It is possible for a high level Empath to make illusions based on a person's emotions, illusions that would amplify the emotion they were feeling at the moment. None of you were actually scared, but I just wanted to do it!" Alyssa explained.

"_Alyssa's crazy!_" Heather thought angrily.

"_She's not crazy! She's just a bit of a joker is all!_" Gwen defended her.

Suddenly, Alyssa stood up. "I feel someone else's emotions on my property. A familiar emotional aura yes..."

The Keepers tensed.

She looked back at them. "Oh it's not Radcliffe!" she said.

They relaxed.

"In fact, I believe it's your predecessor, Bridgette!" Alyssa exclaimed.

The others turned to look at her. "Marissa? Why is she here?" Bridgette was puzzled.

"Let's find out, shall we?" Alyssa made them all disappear again in her signature pink light.

* * *

Marissa was indeed standing outside Alyssa's doorstep when they appeared there.

"Marissa! Long time no see!" Alyssa greeted her warmly.

"It has been indeed. How are you all?" she asked the others.

"We're fine." They answered in unison.

"_Bridgette, remember when you told me about the little incident with your powers?_" Marissa asked.

"_How could I forget?_" Bridgette answered.

"_I came here to ask her about it, but since you are here you can hear about it as well. Do you want your fellow Keepers to be there?_"

"_I can't really stop them from coming back inside without them figuring out that something was wrong, could I?_ _Besides, this could possibly affect them as well. Especially Gwen and Heather!_"

"_Good thinking._"

Gwen, Izzy, Heather, Lindsay and Alyssa were watching them do this the whole time and they knew they were discussing something.

"Alyssa can we go inside? I have a question to ask you about Empathy. It's extremely important." Marissa said.

Alyssa looked back at the Keepers. "Is this a conversation for them?" she asked inclining her head towards them.

"It would be since it involves Bridgette..."

"It's about the Alejandro glowing thing, isn't it?" Gwen asked.

"You're a sharp one! Yes it is!" Marissa answered.

"Come on. If it's something important, I want to know about it before Hasim comes back, so I can tell him and the other Immortals about it." Alyssa beckoned them inside.

* * *

"Seriously, this place still looks like this?" Marissa said.

"Is everyone going to say that when they enter my basement? Sheesh!" Alyssa said. "This house has been like this since before Madeline was born, Marissa!"

"_That's why it's time for a bit of remodeling!_" Marissa thought to Bridgette, who giggled.

She summoned another chair from elsewhere in the house, sat and motioned for the others to sit as well. She soon became businesslike.

"So, Bridgette, I need you to describe for me what exactly you saw and at what point in the show did it come up." She leaned forward to listen.

Her face had a thoughtful expression throughout Bridgette's explanation.

When Bridgette finished, Alyssa was silent for a moment before speaking.

"What I think that is, is Bridgette seeing Alejandro's aura. He was doing something evil at the time, so that would have amplified the evil aura around him." Alyssa explained.

"Is there a possibility that it could also be showing that he has some sort of Dark Magic?" Marissa asked.

The Keepers looked stunned at this pronouncement.

"Wait, Alejandro has Dark Magic?" Heather asked.

"Not necessarily so. That was probably just his... malice in general showing up. All the same, Gwen, Heather, I'd advise you to keep away from him. When he is eliminated, Bridgette, Izzy, Lindsay, I'd advise you to steer clear of him. He may or may not have powers but either way, he still appears to be bad news." Alyssa said.

"Anyway, I can feel Hasim's aura nearby. It is probably time for you girls to get back to Canada and the Jumbo Jet." Alyssa stood up and led them all out the basement and back to the front yard.

* * *

"Marissa, what a surprise to see you here!" Hasim said as he saw them coming up to him.

"I was visiting Wispera to do some shopping so I decided to pay Alyssa a visit before I went." Marissa explained.

"Getting her opinion on clothing options?" Hasim asked.

"That too." Marissa smiled. "Akari is back in Japan so she is out of the question for now."

"Alyssa, you did not do the illusion prank again, did you?" Hasim raised an eyebrow.

"Always." Alyssa smirked.

"Well, it's time to get these girls off this planet and back to theirs. Good bye!" he waved to Marissa and Alyssa before teleporting back to Earth.

* * *

Hasim teleported to Playa Des Losers first, dropping off Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay.

"Did you have a good time on Wispera?" he asked.

"With Alyssa, the time there was certainly interesting!" Izzy answered.

"It usually is. Take care!" He waved his staff again and soon he, Heather and Gwen were back on the Jumbo Jet, this time in the common area.

"Remember, keep your head in the game and please **try **to put your differences aside will you? You don't have to like each other, but at least be civil!" he advised.

"We'll do our best." Gwen said.

Hasim flashed them one last smile before departing.

* * *

Well, another chapter come and gone!

Read and review!


	17. Sweeden Sour

Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Back in Loser Class for the first time in a _long_ while, Team Amazon sat brooding.

Or at least you thought they would be...

Instead it was as much of a party as they could make it.

"Courtney's gone!" Sierra cheered, hoisting a rat into the air and beginning to dance with it.

Gwen, Heather and Cody turned to her, looking incredulous.

Sierra shrugged. "_What?_"

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **"Courtney's gone! We vanquished our foe just like I did with my avatar in Third Life. A druid warrior elf with Level 35 sword skills and level 62 _massage._"

She paused as if she realized something. "Oh. You're probably wondering why I'm not fuming about the fact that Gwen's still here. Well the truth is, even though Gwen has _my_ Cody's heart, Courtney seriously scares _me!_"

She had a frightened look on her face briefly before the camera turned off.

* * *

Heather sat reading her Elemental Book but her mind was currently elsewhere.

"_Alejandro- what was he doing last episode! His and Duncan's weird behaviour, Gwen and Courtney being distracted like that..._"

"_And you being distracted like that too?_" Bridgette said.

"_What? Me? No!_" Heather protested.

"_That's what you'd like to think. Listen to me, Alejandro is not good news!_" Bridgette exclaimed.

"_And you don't think I know that because? I was there when Alyssa explained what happened with your powers, in case you've forgotten!_" Heather raised an eyebrow.

"_I didn't think you would. Please, just be careful okay?_" Bridgette closed the Link.

Heather looked around and noticed that Gwen was no longer there. "Where did she go?" she said to herself.

Cody overheard her. "Oh, you mean Gwen? She went out into the common area."

Sierra frowned at this. "_Cody..._" she said in a warning tone.

"Uh oh." Cody's eyes grew wide at the furious look on Sierra's face and he soon bolted off, Sierra close behind him.

* * *

In the common area, Gwen was reading her Elemental Book when Duncan came over and sat beside her.

"What's up, Pasty?" he put his hand around her. She snapped the book shut, shook his hand off and turned to glare at him.

Duncan actually recoiled at the furious look that Gwen gave him.

"What did I do?"

"Oh, you **know **what you did." She said, folding her arms.

"You mean in Australia? You know that that was just an act to throw Courtney off her game!" Duncan explained.

"Oh really? So technically you were trying to sabotage our team?" Gwen looked angrier still.

"Well, I, uh..." Duncan scratched his head.

"You know I actually thought you had feelings for her? _**Still?**_ Did you know how _**upset**_ I was?" Gwen's voice rose.

"Look, I'm sorry! If I hadn't done it, you would probably be back in Canada now!" Duncan started backing off as he saw the furious look on his girlfriend's face.

Gwen got up, went over to him, and gave him such a hard slap in the face that it knocked him over and left a handprint. She left without a word while Duncan was holding his cheek and screaming in pain.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Duncan: **He held an ice pack to his cheek, which was now bright red, in addition to the swelling and the hand print. "Yeah, I probably deserved that. I never knew she could hit so hard though. Wow!"

**Gwen: **She waved her arm around. "That actually felt good, to get all of that out! Although maybe I hit him a bit _too_ hard..." She shrugged. "He should be glad I didn't kick him in the-"

* * *

In First Class, Alejandro sat, pondering his next move.

"_Courtney is gone, so I can't manipulate her to mess with Heather anymore and Gwen, well, Duncan is here. It would not bode well for me to flirt with her. Besides, she's not attracted to me in any way._"

Alejandro got up, went to the table where Owen and Duncan sat with the chocolate chip cookies and took one.

"_Hmm, not bad. Not bad at all! These things are actually pretty great! I suppose I could make one allowance for myself to eat some of these..._" he thought.

"_In fact, maybe I should take some of these for Heather, I'm sure she would like them..._" he thought sinisterly. "_My task isn't over yet..._"

He took about half a dozen cookies up and went into Loser Class.

Heather saw him coming and turned her back to him.

"Beautiful, don't be like that! I bring a peace offering of cookies- chocolate chip ones!" he held them out to her.

Heather raised an eyebrow at this and accepted them reluctantly, eating and glaring at his retreating back at the same time.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"He may be the enemy, but who am I to turn away a peace offering?" she held up the last cookie she had. "Besides, before I started eating them, I checked. There's no poison, no laxatives, no sleeping pills, _**no love potion...**_"

**Alejandro: **"My mother always said the way to a woman's heart is a long road. But shortcuts are made of chocolate!" He held up a last piece of a cookie he was eating and tossed it into his mouth before smirking evilly.

* * *

"Welcome to Sweden!" Chris said in a bad Swedish accent.

"_First the plane goes spinning out of control on the ice, crashes into an iceberg and now this joker has to try and talk like a Swedish person!_" Heather thought furiously.

"Where are those jackets you ordered for us from the Yukon?" Heather as well as everyone else had chattering teeth and was shivering.

"Oh come on! I spent all day working on my accent and nobody pays me a compliment on how authentic it sounded?" Chris was exasperated.

"That accent did not sound authentic, C-Chris! That w-w-was the worst Swedish accent I've ever h-heard!" Gwen chattered.

"I-i-t sounded like th-th-the Sw-Sweedish Chef in p-pain!" Duncan chattered. His cheek was still red from the slap Gwen gave him earlier.

Chris looked even more annoyed at this and humped before walking off.

He soon came back with Chef.

"The jackets are here!" Chris announced.

All the contestants started jumping up and down and cheering.

"...in six to eight weeks."

They all glared at him.

"_Tough luck with that. I wish I could help you resist the cold from over here._" Bridgette commented.

"_And I could have helped you warm up!_" Izzy said.

"_You'd turn us both into toast is what you'd do..._" Heather muttered.

"Come on people, follow me!" Chris beckoned for them to follow.

"_Well, it's time for us to head to our doom..._" Gwen sighed. "_Talk to you girls later._"

* * *

"Before you is a _mysterious_ pile of IBUILDA tools and pieces. Your first challenge is to use Allen keys, wooden sledgehammers and your wits to turn your piles in whatever they're supposed to be when properly assembled." Chris glanced at Chef behind him and smirked.

"Sadly, the instructions were '_accidentally' _shredded when they were put through a shredder." He laughed.

"Fool, how do you _'accidentally' _shred instructions through a shredder?" Chef was incredulous.

"I have my ways."

"You do realize that it going to take even longer for them to complete the challenge without the instructions, right?" Chef raised an eyebrow.

"Chef my man, are you going soft? Since when do you care how long the challenge takes?" Chris was surprised as were many of the contestants.

"Why would he suddenly care like that?" they thought.

"Since the last time we were in the Yukon and I figured out that the cold and I don't mix!" Chef raised a fist.

"Okay, okay man! Cool down! Oh wait, ha, ha! _**Cool down!**_ No need to do that here with all this ice around..." Chris walked off, leaving them to the challenge. Chef grumbled and followed.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Gwen: **"Yep. Building something that we don't even know what it is yet. _With no instructions._ In the cold. With _**no **_jackets whatsoever. I can tell that this is going to be _fun..._"

**Chef Hatchett: **"I- HATE- THE- COLD!"

* * *

"Anyhoo, the first team to correctly assemble whatever it is they're supposed to, will earn a distinct advantage in the second part of the challenge. Now, _**go!**_" Chris said.

Both teams ran to their respective piles.

Heather immediately began trying to fit pieces together, throwing each piece back into the pile as she discovered that they didn't fit.

"How are we possibly going to make any progress like this?" She said, after about half a dozen tries.

"Hold on- let _me_ try something." Cody stepped forward.

"And how do _you_ of all people plan on figuring this out, geek!" Heather snapped.

"Cody has his ways, okay? Now just **shut up!**" Sierra shouted.

"What did you just say?" Heather said in a dangerous tone of voice.

"Heather, be careful..." Gwen said, stepping forward.

"I don't need any help from _you, _Weird Goth Girl!" Heather snapped.

"_Heather, that was totally uncalled for!_" Bridgette said.

"_Just because she's my fellow Keeper doesn't mean I have to like her!_" Heather snapped back angrily, cutting off the Link.

"I said, _**shut it!**_ Cody's a genius! He'd probably figure it out faster than you ever could!" Sierra snapped, taking up a particularly large, heavy looking metal bar and swinging it at the Earth Keeper.

Heather replied by taking another piece of metal, this time one with a large metal circle at the end and began hitting it at the purple haired girl, both of them angrily shouting insults at each other all the while.

* * *

Alejandro, back with his team was watching all of this in amusement.

"_Oh, how entertaining girl fights can be! Especially where the Earth Keeper is involved. I am surprised that Sierra is lasting that long especially as Heather is wielding both her super strength and her metal manipulation powers to her advantage..._" he smirked.

Behind him, Owen and Duncan were talking.

"Hey, girl fight! Cool!" Owen commented, while searching through his team's parts.

"Normally I would agree, but Alejandro is causing this." Duncan paused as he threw another piece back into the pile.

"Alejandro- it seems like Noah was right about him, Owen! It's just you and me now, buddy!" he patted the larger teen on the back.

When Alejandro returned to them, they both made it look as if no conversation had taken place between them at all while he was gone.

"So, how are things going over here, amigos?" He said in a fake cheerful voice.

"Oh, they're _fine, _Alejandro, things are going just fine! Hey Owen, throw me that sledgehammer, would you please?" Duncan held up his hand to catch it, but it hit him in the forehead instead, knocking him over.

Alejandro struggled to hold back a laugh. "It doesn't look like they're going fine to me!" he chuckled slightly.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Duncan: **He now had a sore forehead in addition to his sore cheek. He held a piece of ice to them both. "Today just isn't my day, now is it?"

**Owen:** "Gee, I hope I didn't hurt Duncan too badly! But it looked like I did. Heh-heh. Sorry Duncan!" He tapped his fingers together in nervousness.

* * *

Back with Team Amazon, Gwen was examining the parts when she suddenly had a vision; standing deathly still and dropping what she held as she did.

"Uh, Gwen? Are you okay?" Cody asked worriedly.

Heather and Sierra both dropped what they were holding and glanced over at her. What they saw was her looking as if she were in a trance, staring blankly at the pile of parts.

"Gwen? Are you all right?" Heather asked, actually sounding quite concerned.

"_You have GOT to be kidding me! No way! Chris wouldn't be this cruel, would he?_" she thought in surprise.

"_Be so cruel about what?_" the others asked in unison.

Gwen shook her head to clear it. "I think I know what this pile of stuff is supposed to be! Chris would probably want to torture us as much as possible so..."

"So what?" Heather and Sierra snapped in unison.

"I wonder..." she rummaged through the pile and began finding pieces that actually fit together.

As Cody watched, it seemed to dawn on him what they were supposed to build. Snatching the pieces away from the Energy Keeper, he began to assemble the pieces at a rapid speed.

"He's got it!" Sierra shrieked in joy.

* * *

"Ugh! I wish I had some barbeque sauce, 'cause this looks like a whale rib!" Owen said, holding up a giant U-shaped piece of metal above his head.

Alejandro paused after he heard Owen say this. After studying the object that 'the butterball' was holding high above his head, a look of realization dawned on his face.

"Owen! You incredibly stupid genius!" he exclaimed, patting him on the back.

"Wow, a compliment and an insult at the same time! Impressive!" Duncan said.

"Yes. My people call it a... complisult_._" Alejandro answered. _"Just a little something I picked up from Radcliffe really..." _he thought.

"Owen, get the sledgehammer." He commanded.

"No!" Duncan exclaimed in fright, touching his face subconsciously and wincing when it stung to the touch. Owen and the sledgehammer incident were still fresh on his mind.

"**I'll** get the sledgehammer." He insisted, before glancing over at Sierra peeking at them. "But first we'll need some privacy! Grab some planks and a canvas!"

The three males worked together and quickly had a privacy screen which they put between them and the Amazons.

When they put it in place, Alejandro and Duncan high fived.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Duncan: **"I don't trust Alejandro. I don't like Alejandro. But letting him know that doesn't gain me anything. So I'll keep it buddy-buddy while I work on Owen and he works on Heather. May the best man win!"

**Alejandro: **"Duncan thinks that I am unaware of his little scheme. Oh how wrong he is. I know a lot more things than you would think..."

* * *

"Quick! Here's the last piece!" Heather handed it up to Cody and he hammered it in quickly.

The three girls below stepped back to look at it and were extremely shocked when they saw what it was.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Gwen: **"She _**would**_ come back to haunt us!"

**Heather:** "Chris, you're one sick evil _***censored* **_I hope you know that!" she shook a fist at the camera.

**Sierra: **"What are we supposed to do with _**that thing?**_"

* * *

"Okay Amazons, what do _you_ have?" Chris walked over to them.

"Oh, I think you already know, jerk." Heather huffed.

"What the hell are we supposed to do with a giant metal Courtney head?" Sierra shrieked.

* * *

At Playa Des Losers 2, most of the eliminated contestants were up in laughter.

_Most_ of them.

Courtney sat in a corner of the room sulking. "I do _not_ look like that!" she shrieked.

"Calm down Courtney! Raging like this isn't going to get you anywhere!" Bridgette said, trying to placate the angry C.I.T.

"Actually, it looks exactly like you. Giant, tough head..." Izzy began listing some of Courtney's negative qualities, which went on for quite a while.

The room looked on in a mixture of amusement and fear as Heather turned to Gwen with the most furious look on her face.

"_You saw that Chris gave us COURTNEY'S HEAD to build?_"

"_Yes, I did. Couldn't say anything for obvious reasons..._"

Heather took a sledgehammer up on screen and began chasing after Cody. "Couldn't you have figured out something else to build, you little twerp! You really made us build that! Come back here and fight like a man!" she shrieked.

Sierra, seeing that 'her man' was in danger, grabbed another large metal bar and began to threaten Heather with it.

"Enguard! That's French for LEAVE MY BOYFRIEND ALONE!" the two began to fight with their weapons.

"Wow. My bet's on Sierra." Eva said.

"So are mine! That evil witch Heather betrayed me and voted me off!" Courtney seethed.

"Courtney, you must understand, I think anyone would've voted off someone on their team who was making them lose on purpose!" Bridgette tried to reason with her.

"WHATEVER!" Courtney roared and stormed out of the room. Bridgette looked slightly hurt at this.

Geoff noticed this and held her closer. "Don't worry, babe! Courtney's just not worth it anymore! She's changed, and not for the better!"

"I know." Bridgette hugged him back and gave him a kiss. "It's just that she's a really good friend of mine and I hate to see her acting like this!"

"_Why don't you use some of your emotion control powers on her then, Bettina?_" Lindsay asked, hugging Tyler close, for he was still injured.

Bridgette raised an eyebrow at her.

"_Probably because she wants Courtney to change on her own, blah, blah, blah._" Izzy commented.

"_That's exactly the idea!_" Bridgette exclaimed.

* * *

"Team Me Be Hot takes the lead! And your ship is a beauty!" Chris threw a sack at them.

"Your reward for finishing first is in that sack." He gestured to it.

Duncan opened it and lifted out a rock. "Rocks? Our reward is rocks? What the hell do we do with a bunch of rocks!"

"It feels just like Christmas again!" Owen wailed.

"Drag your ship to open water and sail north until you find Chef to receive your next instructions." Chris said.

And idea occurred to Alejandro while Chris was talking. "_Why not try distracting Heather while we do this task?_"

And with that, he ripped his shirt off.

"Come on team! I'll pull from the bow!" he exclaimed.

"Uh, with your shirt off?" Duncan raised an eyebrow.

"Questions are for later. Actions are for now. Push like the wind!" he ran off to pull the boat forward by tying the rope attached to the front the boat under his arms and pulling forward.

"He sure does talk pretty for a guy..." Duncan commented to Owen, who merely nodded.

Meanwhile, Heather was watching this, dazed. Her focus was on nothing else.

"_Alejandro is so... hot, so... attractive, so..._" she was almost drooling.

The other Keepers were trying to break through her daze with little success, until...

"HEY! HEATHER! SNAP OUT OF IT AND FOCUS!"

She shook her head to clear it and saw that it had been Sierra yelling at her.

"Thank you!" Sierra turned back to what they had built and began to explain her idea.

"_Wow, Heather, you've really got it bad for Alejandro, don't you?_" Gwen teased.

"_I do not!_"

"_Oh please, if you're not falling for him, then Izzy isn't insane!_" Gwen replied.

"_Seriously Heather, you need to be careful about him!_" Bridgette added.

"_He isn't the good guy here, Heather! Be careful around him!_" Izzy said.

"_Please. He's just playing the game. I'll beat him if it's the last thing I do!_" Heather vowed.

"_Don't say that!_" Lindsay squealed.

"So, therefore if Courtney's head is hollow..." Sierra continued.

"Don't get me started on that one!" Heather rolled her eyes.

"Who don't we just saw the top of her head off and ride in it like a boat?" she suggested.

"DONE!" Gwen and Heather said in unison. The latter immediately grabbed a saw, jumped on top of the head and quickly cut through the head, throwing the cut off piece far away into the distance.

* * *

The teams and what they had built were now afloat thanks to a fart which only Owen could produce, which had cracked the ice.

Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot had nominated Owen as their boat's captain, even though on both Duncan and Alejandro's parts, they only allowed it so that they could get on Owen's good side.

Team Amazon after Gwen and Heather had a brief spat about who would be the captain, Sierra stepped in, took the captain/Viking hat from Chris and tossed it on Cody's head, saying that she had had enough of the arguing and wanted to beat the boys as much as the others did.

Alejandro however was beginning to regret that decision more and more as Owen rambled on in the phoniest/worst pirate accent he had ever heard.

"_It's a VIKING hat you incredible ignoramus!_" he wanted to shout. But no, he had to maintain his cover until his mission was complete...

"Ar, why are ye pointing us away from the battle? Are ye yellow?" Owen asked.

"But capture thy flag and we win, Captain! It be a piece of pie!" Duncan said, casting a glance over at Alejandro who was controlling the rudder.

"Stop talking like a pirate!" Alejandro said. "_It's really getting to me dammit! The things I do for power..._"

* * *

"Look! They're turning around!" Sierra was at the front of their vessel.

"WHAT? Why would they do that?" Gwen exclaimed.

"Because boys are stupid, that's why!" Heather exclaimed.

"_What do you have against boys?_" Lindsay asked.

Heather ignored this.

"BATTLE STATIONS!" Gwen exclaimed.

Sierra ripped a piece of metal off the side and placed it on top of their cannon.

Guessing what Sierra was trying to do, Cody ran for one of their Swedish meatballs and put it on one side.

"FIRE!" Gwen and Heather jumped onto the other side of the metal and sent their ammo flying at the other team's boat.

"MEATBALL DEAD AHEAD!" Alejandro pointed towards the incoming object.

Luckily for them, it missed.

"What? First strike? Sorry Gwen, but it's time to fight back!" Duncan loaded up their cannon, Alejandro rubbed two of the rocks they had received to ignite the fuse, firing it.

It went straight through Courtney's nose.

"They're firing back! Load the cannon again!"Gwen exclaimed.

Everyone ran back to the cannon.

After a long, fierce battle, Team CIRRRRH was declared the winner after having run out of meatballs, they used Owen to demolish Team Amazon's boat.

* * *

Heather was in the cargo hold, reading her Elemental Book, when Alejandro came down, apparently looking for something. He did not even realize Heather was there until he was being shoved into a crate by the angry Earth Keeper.

"Okay, what is your problem?" Heather asked him angrily.

"Surely I do not have to explain it to you. We are in a competition, remember?" he asked innocently.

Heather narrowed her eyes at his tone.

"Oh? So picking off my teammates while you totally blank me is strategy now?"

"Yes it is. When dealing with jealousy..."

"I AM NOT JEALOUS!" Heather shouted.

"Believe me, when I flirted with Courtney, it was to distract her so you could blindside her. Now that she is gone, the only woman I want to look at is _you._" Alejandro held her face as if to kiss her.

"Uh, whatever." Heather said, voice growing uneven.

"No! Heather! Don't let him fool you! He's just using you like he did me!" Bridgette practically screamed at her.

She needn't have had to worry about that for long though because Chris' voice soon interrupted the pair, summoning Team Amazon to their elimination ceremony.

* * *

During that, someone in the shadows had been watching them. Now that Heather was gone, the person spoke in a raspy voice.

"_I know who you are and what you are doing..._"

Alejandro turned towards the voice startled, but the figure had moved away too quickly.

"_You are a shadow manipulator..._"

Again Alejandro turned, only for him to miss again.

"_You work for Radcliffe..._"

"WHO ARE YOU?" He shouted in frustration.

"_I am someone who has being on the receiving end of Radcliffe's anger..._"

Alejandro stiffened.

"_I know of his scheme against the current Keepers eh... Stop before it it's too late! Before you become like mee..._"

With that the voice spoke no more.

Alejandro left the cargo hold, very unnerved.

* * *

Back in Radcliffe's throne room, he had just seen Alejandro's last confessional where had practically given away the fact that he had grown fond of the Earth Keeper despite his mission.

"THIS WILL NOT DO!" Radcliffe roared. Most of his servants sank back in fear.

One of the portraits on the walls around him, a woman with messy black hair and light green eyes spoke up.

"If I may, Radcliffe..." she spoke.

He turned around sharply to look at her. "What is Ellen?" He asked.

"Your magic can give other people powers, can it not?" Ellen asked.

"Yes..." Radcliffe answered.

"Why not find someone who has a grudge against one or more of the Keepers? You could give them a power in exchange for their services in defeating them!" she suggested. "That tactic worked in gaining recruits when I fought with you against the fifth generation of Keepers!"

"Brilliant idea, Ellen! And I know just who to use..." he rubbed his hands together with an evil smirk before grabbing his staff, waving and disappearing in a flash of orange-brown light.

* * *

Courtney sat fuming in her room at Playa Des Losers 2. Ever since she had left the lounge during the last episode, she hadn't left her room since.

"Stupid Goth Girl, stupid Heather, stupid Duncan... I HATE THIS DAMN SHOW!"

She threw a vase across the room in her fury, which shattered into tiny pieces when it hit the opposite wall.

"I want revenge! But how!" she wondered aloud.

"I believe I can be of assistance there, Courtney." A voice said.

She whipped around to see a tall, tan, lean man with long black hair with red streaks tied in a ponytail and narrow light green eyes with a long, thin scar that went from under his left eye to his chin. He wore a black dress shirt and black pants and was twirling a long staff that looked like two thick, black snakes intertwined. At the top, she noted, in the space between the snakes' heads which had silver fangs protruding from them, was a glowing, dark, orange-brown orb.

She was stunned for only a moment before quickly recovering.

"WHO ARE YOU, AND HOW THE HELL DID YOU GET INTO MY ROOM?" she shrieked.

"Calm down, Courtney, be calm. My name is Radcliffe and I come to offer you an opportunity to get the revenge that you so badly desire." Radcliffe introduced himself.

"Why?" Courtney raised an eyebrow.

"Because Gwen and Heather aren't quite what they seem and I want to take them down, along with three others- Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay. If you agree to help me, I can give you great power!" With that, he decided to demonstrate by using a spell to repair the broken vase and returning it to its original position.

Courtney looked at him shocked. "I wouldn't mind destroying Gwen, Heather, Izzy and Lindsay but Bridgette is my friend!" she exclaimed.

"Really?" Radcliffe raised an eyebrow.

"_**Really.**_" Courtney insisted.

"Well then, this is an opportunity not to be missed. Think about it will you? I will be back again soon for your answer..." Radcliffe said.

And with that, he disappeared.

"_Believe me, I'll think about it..._" Courtney smirked to herself.

* * *

HyperForce has drawn some ore stuff for this story which I encourage you you to go check out. The link to his DeviantArt Gallery is in my profile.

Read and review, like always!


	18. Aftermath Aftermayhem

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Radcliffe was sitting on his throne idly reading a book and drinking some wine when José suddenly ran into the room.

"MASTER RADCLIFFE!"

Radcliffe dropped his glass in surprise and looked up to glare at him.

"Haven't I told you to alert me in advance when you're coming to pay a courtesy call!" he exclaimed angrily.

"I'm sorry Master Radcliffe." José bowed apologetically.

"Get up. Now what is so important that you feel as if you can just waltz in here unsummoned?" Radcliffe asked coolly, while using a spell to repair his glass.

"I have some information which may be of use to you, Master..." José trailed off.

"Go on..." Radcliffe fiddled with his staff.

"It seems as if the Water Keeper, Bridgette had been... isolated from the other Keepers she was with before."

Radcliffe perked up. "Really?"

"Yes, Master. The woman, Blainley- the one who both Bridgette and Geoff hate, set her up on a plane to Siberia! She's practically on the other side of the world, with no other magical beings to help her and she isn't fully trained!"

"Where do you get your information from?" Radcliffe asked curiously.

"Alana changed into someone with Technopathy powers and hacked into the Total Drama Aftermath's camera feed! She would have come herself, but seeing as she is busy with the role of Serafina at the moment..."

"Well then. There is no time to be wasted, is there?" Radcliffe smirked his signature evil smirk before teleporting away.

* * *

"Isa, is it just me or does it seem as if something is terribly wrong?" Lindsay asked. She and Izzy were both on their way down to the Aftermath studio.

"It isn't just you. I felt it too. Come to think of it, I haven't seen Bridgette all day!" Izzy replied, slightly worried.

"_Izzy, Lindsay!_" Gwen called out.

"_What is it, dear leader?_" Izzy asked with a slight grin.

"_Is Bridgette okay? I tried reaching out to her, but I barely got her before the connection fizzled out!_" Gwen asked, worried.

"_I tried as well to ask her about something, but I didn't get through at all!_" Heather added. "_Something is wrong!_"

"_Greta, should we tell our predecessors about this?_" Lindsay asked.

"_Not yet. We have to confirm our fear before we do that. Buzz me if anything comes up! It's going to be a long plane ride to the next destination!_" Gwen closed off the Link.

Izzy and Lindsay looked at each other for a moment before taking their seats in the Peanut Gallery beside each other.

* * *

"Attention Total Drama fanatics! Forget the Aftermath! This is Total- Drama- Aftermayhem!" Geoff walked out onto the Aftermath set to thunderous applause.

"I'm your co-host Geoff and this is weird, 'cause Bridge is supposed to meet me up here..." he continued, puzzled.

"_Not a good sign..._" Izzy looked at Lindsay worriedly.

"_That makes me feel odd too..._" Lindsay replied.

"But first, no one is going to get an allergic reaction to these nuts! It's the Peanut Gallery!" Geoff gestured to the Gallery and when the spotlight fell on them, they smiled and waved at the camera, trying to mask the growing unease they felt.

"And get this! Our own obnoxious, self-centered, roving reporter Blaineley is finally roving! Far, _**FAR**_ away from here!"

At this, Lindsay and Izzy were clapping the loudest, Izzy with a wide grin on her face.

"Yes, Blaineley's off to a Total Drama tour to potential new franchise locations and she's meeting with one Total Drama super-fan contest winner in each country! Stay tuned, 'cause apparently this super-fan is Blaineley-obsessed! Wow, never thought I'd say that..." Geoff said.

"_Me either!_" Izzy thought.

"Take it away, Bridge!" he continued.

When Bridgette did not appear where she was supposed to, the two present Keepers grew even more worried.

"Where's my tofu angel at?" he asked, puzzled.

"Here's a hint- they eat a lot of red meat there!"

Izzy and Lindsay, along with everyone else gasped when they heard that voice.

"You- but you're supposed to-"

"Well said, Geoffy boy!" Blaineley remarked coolly.

"_What did you do with her!_" Geoff asked, not bothering to hide the anger in his voice.

As Blaineley explained her scheme to get Bridgette away, Izzy and Lindsay listened in horror.

"Must- resist- urge to MURDER!" Geoff seethed.

"_Must- resist- urge- to- burn BLAINELEY INTO A CRISP!_" Izzy thought furiously.

"_What happened? What's going on?_" Gwen asked, having overheard that thought.

"_Bettina sent Bethany all the way to Siberia!_" Lindsay wailed.

"_WHAT!_" Gwen and Heather exclaimed in unison.

"_How did this happen!_" Heather was the first to 'speak' after this pronouncement.

Izzy and Lindsay sent memories of Blaineley's scheme to Gwen and Heather respectively who promptly let out expressions of horror.

"_I'm telling Vesta!_" Gwen immediately cut off the Link.

* * *

Meanwhile in Siberia, Bridgette woke up disoriented.

"_What? What happened?_" she thought.

She sat up and noticed a stack of winter clothing nearby. Not that she needed it- cold no longer affected her as it used to.

Not only that, but it was snowing heavily.

She put on the winter gear anyway.

"Where the hell am I?" she thought aloud.

"You're in Siberia!" a voice said.

Bridgette turned towards the voice.

"You!" Bridgette glared at Radcliffe.

"What did you do to me! Why am I here! Why are_** you **_here!" she asked in fury.

"I didn't send you here. Blaineley did. I merely saw an opportunity to destroy the Water Keeper!" he smirked.

"And I also brought along a _friend _to help me out." He waved his staff and a large Siberian Brown Bear lumbered out of a nearby cave.

Bridgette froze in terror as she noticed that this bear not only looked _very_ crabby, but also had glazed over, blank-looking eyes- not normal.

"Water Keeper Bridgette, meet Bruno the Bear. Bruno the Bear, meet the Water Keeper, Bridgette." Radcliffe twirled his staff as if he were bored.

The bear ran at her suddenly. Bridgette screamed and ran.

"Have fun!" he said in an amused tone before disappearing.

When the interns that had set up nearby heard her screaming, they came running.

"Bridgette? What are you doing here! Blaineley is supposed to be here not-" the intern that spoke, Billy's twin brother, froze in terror when he saw the large bear chasing after her.

"No time to chat Wesley! _Run!_" Bridgette went straight past him.

However, there wasn't really a need to tell him this...

"RUN AWAY! There's a giant Siberian Brown Bear coming right at us!" he shrieked like a little girl as her ran.

The other interns were silent for a moment before shrieking and running off too.

The intern that had spotted her first had fallen behind.

When Bridgette heard a scream of terror and pain she looked back, only to see Wesley getting crushed to death in the jaws of the bear, his blood quickly changing the colour of the pristine white snow.

"NO!" she screamed again and tried to use some of her ice powers to help him; but unfortunately, since she wasn't fully trained in that area as yet it didn't work.

"_Bridgette move __**now!**_" Marissa yelled at her through the Link.

"_Marissa?_" Bridgette kept on running but was startled, nevertheless.

"_Gwen told Vesta about what happened and she told me. I'm on Alma now. Nasira, Hasim and President Tavares are arranging something to rescue you. Just hold on, I know you can! I'll be there soon!_" Marissa closed off the Link.

* * *

"We've got her on the feed? Great! Put her on!" Geoff spoke into his headset.

When the screen lowered to reveal Bridgette in the middle of a blizzard and looking terrified, Izzy cracked her knuckles and let out a low growl and Lindsay put a hand on her shoulder to try and calm her down- before she set the set on fire.

"GEOFF!" Bridgette screamed.

"Hey baby! You okay, Bridgey-bear?" Geoff asked concernedly.

"BEAR! Is the bear back? We've already lost one intern!" she screamed in terror as an avalanche fell on top of her.

Izzy and Lindsay looked at each other worriedly and then turned to glare at Blaineley who was looking mighty pleased with herself.

"Snap out of it people! _I've_ got a show to host!" Blaineley slapped Geoff in the face.

"You're a monster, you know that? A MONSTER!" Geoff clenched his fists in fury.

"Meh. Been called worse. Moving on, it's time to introduce out three eliminated contestants!" Blaineley walked away from him, unaffected.

"He's brilliant, witty and would be the one to watch in the competish- if he weren't here... Welcome NOAH everybody!" Noah gave a quick wave to the camera before sitting.

"Next, he's the guy who flirted with danger- aka Courtney even though he's got a memory challenged girlfriend at home. It's TYLER!"

When no one came from back stage, she looked around puzzled. "Where is h-"

Tyler suddenly swung in from a vine and knocked her over, off the stage, him crashing behind.

The audience, Geoff and the Peanut Gallery laughed loudly at this.

"Not funny..." Blaineley got up, groggy. However, Tyler was in a much worse state than she was.

"Tyler!" Lindsay squealed in worry and ran to him.

"And last but not least... our final loser has a temper problem to match Eva's, lost her boyfriend to a Goth Girl and got thrown out of a plane by Heather. Please welcome... Courtney!"

Courtney walked out on stage looking very grumpy. She said not a word to anyone as she walked over to her seat.

* * *

"It's time for me to announce our big surprise!" Blaineley said.

Courtney actually glanced at Trent, who sat next to her worriedly. He mirrored her expression.

"Tonight, Total Drama Aftermath is holding the very first ever Total Drama Second Chance Challenge!"

The entire Peanut Gallery cheered loudly as Blaineley explained the Challenge.

"Five of you rejects are about to capture lightning in a bottle. Or in this case, peanuts in a can!"

"_Izzy!_" Gwen called out to her.

"_I had a vision of what's about to happen! Stand in front of Beth when it does! You will be able to have a chance then!_"

"_Okay, I'll do my best!_" Izzy closed off the link.

The two interns fired the cans of peanuts into the crowd of contestants that wanted to try their luck.

Izzy did a back flip, knocked over Courtney, landed on Beth's head with one hand and caught the peanut can with another hand.

"Hey!" Beth cried out, indignant.

"**Watch it psycho!**" Courtney snapped.

"Sorry Beth! Orders from the captain!" Izzy said, popping open her can and completely ignoring Courtney.

"WAAHHH!" Izzy was startled by the Chris in the box popping out at her and dropped it in surprise.

When all the chaos cleared, it was revealed that Izzy, Leshawna, Lindsay, Noah and Tyler were the ones that were 'lucky' to have a second chance.

* * *

Back in Siberia, Bridgette and some of the interns had finally managed to evade the bear and were trudging over to the Blaineley super fan's house.

"Who can possibly survive in the middle of this winter wonderland anyway!" one grumbled.

"Probably him..." Another pointed towards the lanky, heavily bundled male who was trudging up to them.

"Who are you?" he asked in a heavy Russian accent.

"We are from Total Drama, here to interview the super fan..." Bridgette started.

"But you are not Blaineley! WHERE BLAINELEY?" the fan got angry and began throwing various things at them.

The interns scattered and ran, leaving her there alone with the super angry super fan and was so busy dodging projectiles that she barely noticed that the camera had come on again.

"Super fan's m-ad about Blaineley!" She ducked a baby seal that had been thrown at her.

"_Now that's just ridiculous!_" she thought.

"STOP THROWING THINGS AT MY HEAD!" she shouted, throwing back the next thing he threw at her.

"What can we do?" Geoff asked.

"Boyfriend and Drama Brothers sing traditional Russian song of Blaineley!" the super fan said insisted.

However by the time _Her Real Name Isn't Blaineley_ was finished, Bridgette could no longer pay attention to the camera, because even the super fan had gone off running when Bruno returned.

Bridgette had fallen, trying to run and Bruno before going after her, decided to maul the camera.

* * *

Everyone, even Courtney gasped at this.

Excluding Blaineley, naturally.

"If that's a Siberian Brown Bear, Bridgette's doomed!" Harold exclaimed.

"My girl is DOOMED, thanks to you!" Geoff exclaimed.

"You sang it, **not me!**" Blaineley said. "And whoever told him about the hair between my toes is going _**down.**_"

"I did!" Izzy exclaimed. "**What are you going to do about it?**" she added in a menacing tone.

"Nothing, nothing at all, Madame Psycho! Or whatever it is you go by these days..." Blaineley cringed at the look Izzy was giving her.

"Thanks for the info, Izzy!" Geoff gave her the thumbs up.

"No problem! **I take great joy in researching people's personal lives...**" Izzy said in a creepy tone.

"You're going to pay for this Blaineley. That I can **guarantee...**"

"Take things seriously, much?" Blaineley said.

"Anyway... someone's about to have another chance at the million..." Blaineley started.

By now, even Lindsay had gotten sick of her and decided to use her telekinesis on the loose spotlight above the meaner blonde's head.

"...find out next on Total Drama Aftermayhem!"

The spotlight finally fell on her head.

"_Drat! I hoping it would at least knock her out..._" Lindsay complained.

"_I think we all were hoping for that, Lindsay..._" Izzy replied.

* * *

Blaineley had just finished explaining the challenge.

"So! You guys ready to play?" she asked.

"Oh I'm ready to play! Play dirty..." Geoff came back from his huff.

"Shouldn't you be commandeering a surfboard to Siberia right about now?" Blaineley asked sharply.

"Aren't you due for some plastic surgery right now, _**Mildred?**_" Lindsay asked.

The audience began cheering and clapping.

"Good one Lindsay!" Geoff gave her the thumbs up.

"I probably should be doing what you said, _**Mildred**_, but there something I _really_ wanted to do first... Cue the clips!"

"Wha... what do you mean?" Blaineley asked worriedly.

"I'm guessing that you didn't get the memo about the green room cam being on 24/7!" Geoff exclaimed.

"WHAT? NOOO!" Blaineley screamed in horror.

Soon everyone in the studio was practically rolling around in fits of laughter at her humiliation after 'Blaineley's Best Moments' played.

"_This is too good!_" Izzy thought.

"_What is?_" Gwen thought.

When Izzy sent her and Heather a memory of the video clip, back on the plane to Sierra and Cody, it seemed as if the two had burst in fits of laughter about nothing.

* * *

"_Where is Marissa already?_" Bridgette thought as she finally managed to breathe a sigh of relief.

"_Hasim teleported me to Siberia. I will be with you shortly. In the meantime, __**stay where you are.**_" Marissa said.

"_Well, that was good timing for that thought, wasn't it?_" Bridgette thought, smiling slightly.

She wasn't smiling for too long however, as Bruno had somehow found her again.

"_Oh jeez! Some luck I'm having today..._" she thought. She tried to freeze the bear in a block of ice, but it only managed to cover his feet.

"_Snap!_" Bridgette scrambled off again.

"_This bear sure is a persistent fellow!_" Bridgette thought.

She managed to duck into a nearby cave and was able to calm down for a few minutes... until Bruno showed up again.

"_I'm trapped in a cave! With a bear! In the middle of a heavy blizzard!_ _I never thought that this would be the way I died..._"

"_Bridgette calm down. You will get out of there. Trust me on this one._" Gwen said, trying to reassure her.

"_Oh sure. I don't see how likely that is... wait did you have a vision?_" Bridgette asked.

"_You could say that..._" Gwen thought slyly.

As the bear was about to come in, he soon let out a howl of pain.

When Bridgette glanced back up at him, she noticed that Bruno had an extremely large splinter in his paw.

When she studied his eyes, she noticed that they were no longer had the glazed over, blank look before, but instead were a dark brown.

"_Huh? What happened there?_" Bridgette thought.

"_What happened?_" Marissa asked.

"_Bruno- the bear, his eyes were all glazed over and disoriented before and now they're dark brown!_" she exclaimed in surprise.

"_Tell me, what was it that broke the mind control spell?_" Marissa asked curiously.

"_Mind control spell?_" Bridgette was puzzled.

"_Yes. The way you described it, it looks as if it was an extremely strong hypnotism spell. When they're under the influence of a spell like that, a person or animal loses complete control of their actions!_" Marissa explained.

"_Oh, okay._" Bridgette thought.

The bear howled in pain again.

"_Poor thing! His paw is hurt!_"

"_Ah. That explains things. If you stay where you are, I should be there in about fifteen minutes. Try not to let Bruno eat you, please!_" Marissa closed off the link.

Bridgette stepped forward, towards Bruno and held his paw. He growled slightly at her, but his eyes said that he was in great pain.

"Don't worry, buddy. I can help you!" she held his paw and examined it.

He whined pitifully again. If bears could cry, Bridgette would swear that Bruno would be doing that now.

"Don't worry, let me get that out for you..." she said this in the most soothing voice she could manage.

She inched the splinter out slowly and tossed it away.

"Now to try some of my healing magic on you..." she clasped her hands around his paw and concentrated.

Her hands glowed blue for a brief second and soon the wound in his paw closed up.

"It might still be tender, Bruno, so..." Bridgette summoned some bandages and began to wrap them around his paw.

Soon the camera flickered on.

* * *

"I have to stay here until Bruno gets better!" Bridgette on screen exclaimed.

"_Surely you don't mean that, right?_" Izzy asked.

"_Couldn't exactly tell him that a magical being that travelled here from another universe is coming to rescue me, can I?_" Bridgette asked.

"_No, no you can't._" Heather said. "_Speaking of, did any of you get the word that we're going to be training again?_"

"_No. I guess because we've all been caught up in the trouble that Blaineley inadvertently caused..._" Bridgette said.

"_Akari just told me!_" Lindsay contributed.

"_Wow, you've actually remembered her name! Impressive!_" Heather said, sarcastically.

"_And you were civil for about five seconds..._" Gwen sighed.

"_Gotta go! I have something that I need to do!_" Izzy cut off the Link.

* * *

"So, Izzy. You've rolled a five so that gives you the last square on the board! The England square!" Blaineley exclaimed. "Go, go, go!"

Izzy and Geoff rolled their eyes at this.

"Your challenge is to capture this intern-" she shoved a random intern in front of her, who looked terrified of Izzy.

"Drag him over to this guard and answer his skill testing question. If you get it right you get to go back into the competition. GO!" Blaineley said in a rush.

"Good luck Izzy!" Lindsay shouted.

Izzy ran shrieking after the intern, who was himself shrieking in terror.

"Well, well, well, looks like I've won this time Geoff!" Blaineley smirked at him.

"Have I mentioned..." Geoff started.

"...That you'll make me pay if it's the last thing you do, blah, blah. Whatever." Blaineley waved him off.

Izzy caught the intern and threw him at Blaineley purposely, knocking her over.

"Woo hoo! I am Izzy the hunter! Hear me roar! _**RAWR!**_"

"See? Karma's a..."

"That wasn't karma, that was bad aim!" Blaineley insisted.

"No, that was karma, _**Mildred!**_" Izzy grinned.

"So, where's my question?" Izzy asked impatiently, ignoring Blaineley's indignant comments.

The guard took his time to find it, before drawing it out of his hat.

Blaineley snatched it from him and read it in a hurry. "What's the name of Duncan's London-based punk-rock band?"

"_Um, let me see... Der Kicker Wickers, Da Mintzel Singers no... I know! It's, it's..._" Izzy thought.

"DER SCHNITZEL KICKERS!" Izzy shouted.

"Congratulations, Psycho Hose Beast! You just won the Total Drama Second Chance Challenge!" Blaineley shook Izzy's hand vigorously.

"And we finished on time..." she added in an undertone to Geoff. "In your face!"

"Time for you to go! Bye bye!" Blaineley started shoving her.

"Oh no you don't! There's something I have to do first, _**Mildred...**_" Izzy said in a menacing tone.

"Really? What!" she asked.

"**This.**"

Izzy held up a firecracker.

Blaineley grew wide eyed and ran away screaming as Izzy chased after her with it laughing wildly.

Geoff and the Peanut Gallery were laughing loudly at this.

"Well, that's the end of our show! Tune in next time, where the Aftermath will be hosted in our secret finale location!" Geoff said.

In the background, Izzy's firecracker exploded, sending Blaineley catapulting across the set, screaming.

He chuckled. "Until next time, Geoff here and this is... TOTAL DRAMA AFTERMAYHEM!"

* * *

"_Stupid Aftermath show, stupid Izzy, stupid Lindsay... And don't get me started on Harold! Why do I have to be surrounded by so many idiots!_" Courtney thought as she headed back to her room, stomping angrily all the way.

Many of the hotel staff members ran in fright when they saw the furious expression on her face.

"_I didn't even get a chance to grab one of those stupid peanut cans! This is so unfair! I was supposed to win. ME!_ **NO ONE ELSE!**"

She walked into her room and slammed the door, leaning against it.

"_Had fun?_"

She whipped around to see Radcliffe in a corner of the room, leaning casually against the wall, staff in hand.

"What kind of question is that!" Courtney asked.

"Still angry, I see."

"Who wouldn't be after being humiliated on live television!" Courtney shrieked.

"Well then have you considered my offer?"

The room was silent for a moment before Courtney began to speak.

"I have thought about it and I've decided... yes, I will join you!" Courtney grew an evil smirk on her face.

"Smart girl."

Radcliffe immediately teleported her to his castle.

Courtney barely had time to gaze around at her new surroundings before Radcliffe pointed his staff at her and muttered a few spell words.

Orange brown light went straight from the staff, surrounded Courtney completely and lifted her into the air.

"What- what's going on?" she asked slightly scared.

"I'm giving you the power you wanted!" Radcliffe explained.

Soon enough, the light subsided and Courtney was returned to the ground.

When it did, Courtney looked remarkably different.

Instead of her usual outfit, she wore a black top with puffed sleeves and a high unfolded collar which stopped just below her chest, leaving her stomach exposed which also showed her breasts slightly. She also wore a black pleated skirt which was at her waist. She also wore black heels with black ankle bracelets, a black choker with a tiny silver charm and black gloves that went just past her wrists.

She had wings now- black lined ones with grey middles and strange grey symbols all around her body and face. Her hair even had jet black streaks in it.

Courtney looked at this in amazement. "Woah." She flapped her new wings slightly.

"Congratulations Courtney. You are now a Dark Fairy. Or as I would like to call you, the Anti-Keeper." Radcliffe said.

"Wow!" Courtney did a little mid air twirl.

"Come. With your new powers, you will need training. We shall begin now." He gestured to her as he headed to the door.

* * *

_**Review!**_


	19. Beyond the Basics Part 1

Oh my goodness. As I was editing this, I saw a message on my favourite online community that one of the member's fiancé had died. It may have been just an online forum, but all of us were always fairly close, many of us even meeting in real life. I don't even know what to say to her. They were truly one of those couples that were real soul mates. They were planning to get married in the winter. I honestly don't know what to say to the poor woman... Those of you that still have your loved ones and such, don't take them for granted. _**Please.**_

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Marissa trudged through the snow, looking for her successor.

"_She is nearby. I can feel her._" She thought.

When she walked further, she saw a trail of blood and following it, found Wesley's body.

She grimaced at the sight. "_Sadly, only the first death this time around. I hope it doesn't get too bad this time around..._"

Soon she happened upon the cave that Bridgette and Bruno were in. Bruno was playfully licking her face and she was giggling.

When she looked up to see Marissa, she ran towards her and almost knocked her over with the force of the hug.

"Well, I'm glad to see you too." Marissa said, after they broke apart.

Bruno watched the pair curiously.

"Bruno, this is Marissa. She's a friend." Bridgette said.

He came up to her and gave her a big lick on the face.

"Friendly creature, isn't he?" Marissa said, patting him.

"He is now..." Bridgette trailed off as time froze.

"What just happened?" Bridgette asked, puzzled.

"Nasira and Hasim both agreed that we had to make the best out of your unfortunate situation and suggested we train more here. Come." Marissa answered while walking outside.

"Fine." Bridgette transformed and flew out.

"Now that we're here, we can begin training with your ice powers. Did you try to use that side of your powers today?" Marissa asked.

"A few times, yes, but it only worked once, and not in the way I intended!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"We shall have to fix that, shall we?" Marissa held up her hand.

It glowed light blue for a second before a large, meter long icicle formed.

"Forget swords and knives when you can make very big, very sharp icicles!" she said throwing it at a nearby tree. It went straight through the trunk without shattering.

"**Woah.**" Bridgette raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"Yep. The ice part of your powers tends to make for some very interesting tactics. Watch this." Marissa held up her hand and snow followed it. They soon formed into bullet shaped pieces of ice.

She clenched and unclenched her hand and the bullets were unleashed on Bridgette, who quickly dodged them.

"Ice bullets. As I've just demonstrated, you can make several types of weapons from ice. You try." She gestured to her successor.

Bridgette concentrated as hard as she could and managed to make a smaller icicle than Marissa had made.

"Not bad for making your Element out of thin air..." Marissa commented. "How about creating it from the snow around you? I find that it is quite easier that way..."

To demonstrate this, she moved her hand. Snow followed her movement. She clasped her hands together, pulled them apart and there was another icicle.

Bridgette tried again and this time was successful.

"Brilliant! Now aim it at me." Marissa said.

Bridgette gave her an incredulous look but since Marissa obviously knew what she was doing, she lobbed it straight at her.

The latter immediately put up a dome of ice around herself. As soon as the icicle made impact, it shattered.

"Ice shield. Definitely not as strong as the Energy Keeper's Energy Shield, but is still very durable." Marissa explained.

Bridgette tried the same thing except she only managed to create an orb of ice that could fit into her hand.

"Wow. A hailstone. Not as big as what I can do yet, not what you were going for, but you still managed to create one..." Marissa commented.

"Try concentrating on making it bigger. Hold your hands apart and focus your magic on it." She instructed.

Bridgette held her hands apart and the hailstone remained in the air between them.

She began to glow a bright blue and as she did, the hailstone eventually grew to the size of a basketball.

"I sure wouldn't like to get hit with that..." Marissa praised her.

"Thanks!" Bridgette smiled.

"Now, I do remember in our previous training session that we went surfing..." Marissa started.

Bridgette nodded.

"We used surfboards made of ice last time so now I'm going to teach you how to make more icy surfaces. Watch me." Marissa flung out her hand and the snow around her started to form together to make a large, long slide.

She then turned her feet into ice and leapt up on top of it.

Bridgette stood below, shocked.

"How did- bu- how- **what?**" Bridgette stared at Marissa's feet.

Marissa chuckled at her reaction. "All Keepers can turn into their Element, Bridgette. It is tricky at first to learn though. Now, about the slide, you need to concentrate on forming the object that you want in your mind first of all. Focus all your magic on creating a slide like mine."

Bridgette held out her hands in front of her and managed to create a slide like Marissa's albeit a bit smaller. She flew on top of it.

"Now as for changing into your Element, you need to focus on which part of your body you want to change. Go ahead and try." Marissa gestured to her.

Bridgette concentrated very hard, focusing all the magic she had on turning her feet into ice like Marissa had and succeeded.

"**Wow.** I actually did it on the first try!" she exclaimed in surprise.

"You are a quick learner, I see. You must follow the same principle when simply changing into water. When you do change into water, you must imagine yourself flowing and focus on the magic running through your veins. The next thing you know, you are pure water! Good for going through narrow spaces or avoiding attacks!" Marissa said, before beginning to slide down.

Bridgette did the same.

"Woah! This is fun!" Bridgette squealed in delight, hair whipping behind her as she did.

Marissa glanced over at her and without a word, raised her hand.

The bottom half of Bridgette's slide immediately bent upwards. Having no reaction time, she slammed right into it.

"OUCH!" Bridgette flew off, clutching her face as Marissa slid gracefully to the bottom of her slide.

"Moral of the story: Never let down your guard." Marissa chuckled slightly.

"I only wish I didn't have to learn the hard way..." Bridgette commented, rubbing her forehead and wincing.

"Believe me, that **wasn't **the hard way." Marissa said, frowning slightly as she remembered what had happened to Aideen.

Bridgette noticed this.

"What is wrong, Marissa?" she asked.

"_Nothing really. I was just thinking about something which occurred during my time as the Water Keeper._" Marissa thought.

Bridgette could feel a slight sense of unease from the older woman as she said this.

"_Anything I should know?_" Bridgette asked.

"_It is not my place to tell you. Perhaps another time, when it is the right time, you will know._" Marissa thought back.

"But for now, we shall continue our training session." She said aloud.

"Dehydration." Marissa touched a nearby tree for a few seconds.

The tree, after a few seconds withered as the water which she drained from it swirled around her arm and eventually disappeared.

"Now, _**re**_hydration." Marissa's arm was covered with the swirling water once again and soon the tree was restored to full health.

"This can be used on any living being, seeing as we all have water in our systems..." Marissa explained.

"Um, but I don't think using it on a tree is going to be the same thing as using it on a human..."Bridgette pointed out.

"I know that. This is why you're going to have to try that one out on me." Marissa said.

There was a stunned silence before Bridgette spoke again.

"You want _me _to dehydrate _you?_ What if I mess up somehow and drain you completely?" Bridgette was really anxious now.

"You won't. I know that you are capable of doing it. Besides, how else are you going to learn?" Marissa said in a matter of fact tone.

"I'm not sure..." Bridgette was still hesitant.

"Look. The only way you're going to master dehydration and puppetry is to practice on someone or something." Marissa said. "There is no one here to practice on, so what do you expect us to do? Besides, I should be fine. Plenty of moisture in the air around us, right?" Marissa gestured around them.

"If you say so..." Bridgette gripped Marissa's hand firmly and concentrated hard. She really did not want to mess this one up.

Both their hands started to glow blue and soon enough, the older Keeper's hand started to dry out.

When Bridgette was finished, Marissa held up her withered hand to inspect it.

"Hm. Not bad at all, Bridgette, not bad! Now, reverse it." She commanded.

Bridgette did that and soon Marissa's hand was restored to optimal health.

"See? I told you that there was nothing to worry about! If I hadn't taught you the basics of Water Keeping before this, then we would have a problem. It's like trying to cook soup and not knowing how to boil water... If you know the basics, the advanced stuff won't be hard to learn!" Marissa said.

Bridgette now reassured, smiled. "Thanks Marissa."

Marissa smiled back. "You are quite welcome. Now, can we move onto Puppetry. Watch my movements _carefully_ first." Marissa had a look of concentration on her face as she performed the movements.

She reached her hands out in front of her and then moved her right hand to the right and her left hand to the left.

"This is how you would control their basic movements, like moving their arms and legs. It is great for throwing them off guard and putting them off their aim." Marissa explained.

"Okay then. You can try that on me now." Marissa stood back and allowed Bridgette to try it.

When Bridgette tried it, not even so much as a finger moved.

"And I was doing so well today too..." Bridgette said as she tried for the second and third time, with no results.

"There's always some tricky part of magic that takes several tries to get right. This is quite fine." Marissa said.

"You must try again. Did you give up the first time you were learning to surf?" Marissa asked.

"No..." Bridgette said.

"Did you give up when you were trying to help animals at the shelter in your hometown?" Marissa asked.

"No..." Bridgette said again.

"Can you give up now when Radcliffe is out there and can wreak havoc with this planet and others at any time he chooses?" Marissa said again.

"Absolutely not!" Bridgette pumped her fist into the air. "I want to try again, Marissa!"

"_That's_ what I wanted to hear!" Marissa said, grinning.

* * *

Gwen and Vesta were facing each other on the flat stretch of land behind the volcano once more.

"Today, we move on from the basics that you learnt last time like manipulating electrical energy among other things. Now, we can start with making portals." Vesta said.

"Am I even ready for that? What would happen if I made one and left part of myself behind?" Gwen asked.

"There is more of a risk of that with teleporting. Portals are safer and they can also take along more people with you than mere teleportation, but they are harder to master. Energy Keepers, however, have managed to perfect that skill." Vesta explained.

She held up her hand and a silver portal appeared.

"So... where does this portal go?" Gwen asked.

"My house." Vesta answered.

Gwen looked stunned for a moment.

Vesta chuckled at the look on her face.

"You don't have to worry about anyone seeing us, remember? Time is frozen! Even if they did, my house is in one of the few communities with several magical residents in Canada. And the ones who aren't magical here know that it exists anyway..." Vesta said.

"There's magic on Earth, _still?_" Gwen asked stunned.

"Yes. Considerably less than what was there in the First Keepers' time but it still exists. Magical and non-magical beings alike live together in harmony there. And the best part- the outsiders can never figure out what's going on in those communities!" Vesta said, chuckling.

Gwen looked bewildered at this. "Where is this place?" she asked.

"In the wonderful province of New Brunswick." Vesta grinned.

"Come now, before the portal closes." Vesta gestured for her to follow. And Gwen did.

When they reappeared, they were in Vesta's living room. She waved her hand and the portal closed behind them.

"Wow. Nice place." Gwen said, marveling at the décor of the room.

"It is my daughter Amy that you should thank. After I moved away from my childhood home in Ottawa when I discovered Desiderata Valley- the name of this town, by the way, and made my life here, Amy, when she grew up and became an interior designer decided that the place needed a whole new look."

"You live with your adult daughter?" Gwen raised an eyebrow.

"No. My adult daughter lives with _me._ I did say it was _my_ house." Vesta said.

"Now, _you're_ going to be the one to make the portal back to the Mora region." She said.

Gwen looked at her incredulously.

"Yes, I'm being serious Gwen. You have to do it. I'm not going to!" Vesta said, plopping down into one of the chairs.

"Remember, concentrate. Focus on the destination that you wish to travel to." She instructed.

Gwen held up her hands which started to glow dazzling silver.

Soon, a swirling silver portal appeared in the middle of the room.

"Yes!" Gwen pumped her fist.

"Not done yet, Gwen. Around and around and around it goes, **where it goes** nobody knows... We don't know if you have managed to reach our destination yet." Vesta pointed out.

"Let's go, shall we?" Vesta and Gwen stepped into the portal and reappeared in the same spot they had left from.

Gwen began to cheer even more. Vesta smiled.

"**Now** you can say that you have made a portal." She said.

"We get to move on to even more challenging things now." Vesta said, holding up a hand high into the air.

She glowed slightly and then out of the clear blue sky, a meteor came hurtling down nearby.

Gwen stood there jaw opened and wide eyed in shock.

"Cosmic Energy, Gwen. Remember? It is in your Elemental Book!" Vesta said, chuckling slightly at the look on her successor's face.

Gwen nodded slowly to show that she heard before shaking her head vigorously to clear it.

"It just amazes me how much power we have. I mean, being able to draw energy from the sun, moon, stars and other cosmic forces too?" she said.

"It is rather overwhelming at first indeed. When I was first learning, that thought occurred to me as well." Vesta said.

"Now, what you just saw, as I would expect that you would know, is a meteor. You can invoke meteor showers, or comets and such to come raining down from the sky whenever you want! Instant wipeout for your enemies..." Vesta demonstrated by making even more of them fall from the sky at various points around them.

"Now that's impressive!" Gwen commented.

"It is indeed. The Nadiri people would be very interested in your powers. They place high value on Astronomy, the study of such celestial bodies." Vesta said.

"Now you must try this. Hold both of your hands up into the sky and focus on which celestial body you want to harness the energy of. It can be any- the sun, the moon, the stars, other planets, you name it!" she instructed.

Gwen did as she was told and she began to glow. Moments later a large comet came hurtling towards them and she had to fly out of the way while Vesta used an energy beam to blast it to pieces.

While in mid air, Gwen made a silvery shield around herself to protect herself from the falling debris.

"Heh, heh. Perhaps I put a little too much power into that comet blast..." she said.

"**A little?**" Vesta raised an eyebrow.

Gwen chuckled nervously.

"Perhaps we should wait a while for you to learn to control the more powerful aspects of Cosmic Energy..." Vesta said.

Gwen nodded vigorously.

"How about we try star bolts then?" Vesta said.

"Seems... doable, I suppose..." Gwen said.

"Concentrate and imagine the magic flowing around your body." Vesta instructed, standing aside.

Gwen closed her eyes and did as she was told.

First the Silver Star necklace started to glow. Then, Gwen was fully surrounded by silver light as actual space stars emerged one by one from the necklace and formed a circle around her.

When she opened her eyes, they were completely silver as the Silver Star necklace continued to glow.

Soon, each star began unleashing powerful beams of its energy, creating giant, smoking craters everywhere they made impact.

As the glow faded away, Gwen's eyes returned to normal.

"That was one powerful spell. I could really feel the power pumping through my veins that time!" She said.

"I could feel the power radiating from you as well. You are nearing the end of your Keeper training and your power is building up. It leaves you feeling invigorated, does it not?" Vesta asked.

"It does." Gwen agreed.

"Let's try something else, shall we?" Vesta's entire forearm changed into pure energy. "Changing into your Element. Definitely not the easiest thing to accomplish all at once, but if you attempt it one body part at a time, you will be able to master the full transformation."

Gwen shook her left arm and managed to mimic Vesta's forearm perfectly.

"Perfect! Now try spreading it to cover more of the left side of your body." Vesta instructed.

The energy spread from her forearm up to her shoulder and covered part of her chest.

"So far, so good." Vesta nodded in approval.

Gwen continued to let the Energy flow through her. It soon covered her head and the right side of her chest, spreading down to the fingers of her right hand.

"Keep going..." Vesta encouraged.

Eventually Gwen managed to fully become a being of pure Energy.

Vesta clapped and cheered in approval. "Wonderful, Gwen. You have done it!"

Gwen was flying around, doing complicated mid-air stunts and testing how her new ability felt, leaving trails of light behind her as she did.

She soon landed and made herself normal again.

"All these spells get easier and easier every time I try!" Gwen said.

"Well, that is what practice is supposed to do!" Vesta replied.

"I know, but wow..." Gwen held up her hands in which she held two orbs of Energy. She promptly made them vanish.

"Perhaps we can move onto solar flares now..." Vesta said, raising a hand into the air.

Immediately, Gwen could feel the Energy around her growing hotter until...

From the direction that the sun was in, a giant beam came hurtling down in the distance, completely obliterating a boulder that was in its path, instantly reducing it to ashes.

"Solar Energy is one of the hardest things to master. And believe me; what you just saw was actually one of the basic things where that is concerned..."

"Your turn." Vesta gestured to her successor.

With a look of upmost concentration, Gwen held up her hand toward the direction of the sun and once she felt its energy starting to come down, she aimed it at another nearby rock, obliterating it as well.

"Getting better and better at this every time I try!" Gwen pumped a fist into the air.

"I am proud of the tremendous progress that you have made here, Gwen." Vesta praised her.

"Now, how about we try those comets again..."

* * *

Courtney and Radcliffe were standing in an area not far from his castle, the large building looming in the background.

There were several jagged pieces of rock sticking out of the ground around them and the ground they stood on was uneven. Out in the distance, several large pieces of rock were floating around in space.

Besides the two of them, there were no other signs of life.

Radcliffe twirled his staff. "So now that you know the story of the Keepers, we're ready to begin." He powered up his staff.

"You should be able to make a shield from negative energy that would be able to repel anything you throw at it. Try putting it up now." Radcliffe fired off some spells at her.

Courtney immediately held up her hand and dark purple energy radiated from her before coming together to form a shield.

The force of the spells sent her skidding along the ground, but the shield somehow still held up.

"Hmm... Not bad for someone new to magic." Radcliffe commented.

"Shadow blasts." Radcliffe said. "You need to focus your magic on gathering the shadows around you and putting them into blasts to well- blast your enemies out of your way!" Radcliffe said sinisterly.

Courtney chuckled. "I look forward to that! Especially using it..." her hands started to glow dark purple.

"..._**ON GWEN!**_" she shouted angrily, blasting a nearby rock into pieces.

Radcliffe raised an eyebrow. "_Well there's a lot of rage in the cage..._" he thought.

He flew up into the air. "Come Courtney. You will have to learn how to fly and fight at the same time." He said, flying towards a particularly rocky region. Courtney took off and followed.

"The powers I gave you allow you to cast Dark Magic spells, particularly curses and hexes. I know quite a lot of them myself and some of them I will be teaching you today. Now, let's start with Mellifera Attackum. The bee hex. As you probably would have guessed, this causes a large swarm of killer bees to attack the subject of your spell." He waved his staff, muttered the spell words and a large swarm of bees appeared out of nowhere and buzzing angrily at Courtney.

"No shields this time! You must learn defensive flying!" Radcliffe said.

"WHAT?" Courtney had a startled look on her face.

"I never said I was going to be easy on you!" Radcliffe smiled sadistically as Courtney weaved her way in and out of the pointy rocks.

"_Well, I suppose he is right. After all, beating Gwen with those powers of hers doesn't sound too easy..._" she thought.

Finally she turned around and halted mid flight, stared down the swarm of bees and with a look of determination on her face, fired off a blast at them which immediately made them disappear.

"Great! If you keep it up, no one will be able to stop you!" Radcliffe said.

"Now you must try to cast that spell yourself! Go on!" He instructed.

"Fine!" Courtney managed to cast the spell successfully. Radcliffe waved his staff and made the bees disappear.

"Not bad for someone new to magic." He said casually.

"We can move on now. Corruptus Locus. This hex causes a swarm of disgusting insects to cover the target."

"_Ugh..._" Courtney shuddered at the thought.

"And I know the perfect person to test these spells on..." Radcliffe smiled sadistically before disappearing.

Courtney landed to wait for him to return. However, she had barely landed before Radcliffe had returned, Carl in tow, whimpering quietly.

"Who is this man?" Courtney asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nobody of consequence." Radcliffe said indifferently, flinging Carl roughly to the ground.

"Oh, okay." Courtney said in the same indifferent tone, shrugging.

"Try it now. Go on, _you know you want to..._" Radcliffe encouraged her.

"Yep. I do want to." Courtney fired off a beam of dark purple light which engulfed Carl completely.

When it subsided, Carl was running around screaming, covered in a variety of creepy crawlies.

Courtney chuckled in amusement at Carl's plight.

"_Wow. This girl is actually much more sadistic than I thought she would be... Perhaps when I am successful, I can make her one of my Generals. Who knows, I might even give her a planet to rule!_" Radcliffe thought.

"What next?" Courtney asked eagerly, truly getting into it now.

Radcliffe almost smiled at her eagerness. "Maladesi Inducio. Causes sickness in the target."

Courtney's eyes followed the movement of Radcliffe's staff as he cast another hex on the unfortunate man.

Carl promptly turned greenish and ran off somewhere to throw up.

"Imagining Gwen doing that in the middle of a fight is fun..." Courtney said.

"I would imagine that." Radcliffe nodded in agreement. "Your turn." He gestured to the direction that Carl had run off to.

Courtney immediately flew off in that direction and soon enough, even more retching sounds could be heard. When they finished, Courtney flew out, holding Carl by the collar and tossing him to the ground in front of Radcliffe.

"How's that?" she asked.

"**Perfect...**" Radcliffe said in a sinister tone of voice.

"How about the blindness curse?" he suggested, waving his staff.

Immediately, Carl's eyes went all white.

He began blundering around, feeling his way around. He tried going in one direction and as such, bumped into a rock.

Courtney and Radcliffe started howling in laughter as he bumped into other rocks.

"Okay, enough of this. We need him alive for now, so..." Radcliffe waved his staff and the blindness curse was removed.

"Tabula Rasa!" Radcliffe exclaimed, pointing his staff at Carl.

His eyes went blank for a moment, and then returned to the mind-controlled maroon.

"What did that curse just do?" Courtney asked, puzzled.

"Tabula Rasa is a curse that erases **all** of a person's memories. Pretty much puts them into an amnesia like state." He explained. "_Not he had that many memories left anyway..._" he thought.

"And of course, no set of curses is complete without... **a torture curse...**" Radcliffe had his sadistic tone of voice once again as he pointed his staff at poor, unfortunate Carl.

A rush of orange-brown light completely covered him and soon he began screaming a high pitched scream in pain.

The light began to grow even brighter and Carl began to scream even louder.

Without a word, Radcliffe waved his staff and the light disappeared.

Carl fell to the ground, sweating and panting heavily.

"You try." Radcliffe gestured to her.

Courtney paused for a moment, before releasing a sphere of dark purple light towards Carl, causing him to scream in pain once again.

Courtney began to laugh an evil laugh as she removed the spell.

"You have made quite a bit of progress today despite being extremely new to magic..." Racliffe complimented her.

"Thanks. With me, there is no room for failure. Failure is for losers!" Courtney said, clenching her fists.

"How right you are. I quite agree. Let us move on, shall we?" Radcliffe began to explain the next curse to her.

* * *

So, with that, another chapter of Keepers of the Elements is over and done with. Now I have time for a little informal poll.

If you had written a male version of this story, who would you have picked to be the Keepers and why? This occurred to me as I was writing this. Just a random thought and I'm curious as to what you people think...

Also, I have edited some of the earlier chapters, so you will want to go back and read those too...

Anyway, read and review people! Can I reach 200+ reviews before the next chapter? I certainly hope so!


	20. Beyond the Basics Part 2

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1

* * *

Aideen and Izzy were inside of the volcano once again, doing their training session.

"Ready Izzy?" Aideen asked.

"Always!" Izzy exclaimed.

"I thought so. Let's start with making explosives, shall we?" Aideen held up her hand and a crackling sphere of flame appeared. However strangely enough, this flame was only one shade of orange.

"This is no ordinary fire ball, Izzy. This kind does much more damage than the usual one." Aideen threw it up into the air and it exploded, sending sparks raining down on them.

"COOL!" Izzy exclaimed cheerfully.

"I wouldn't say that..." Aideen said.

"Why don't you have a try at this?" Aideen flicked her hand and another exploding sphere appeared.

Izzy mimicked her actions and was successful.

"Yay!" she cheered.

"You are quite the natural at this." Aideen said.

"Naturally. I really live and breathe fire!" Izzy exclaimed in response.

"Live fire maybe. But breathe it? I don't think so!" Aideen said. "At least not yet anyway..."

"Wait. Wait. Wait. We can _breathe _fire?" Izzy said.

"Indeed we can! Would I ever lie to you?" Aideen smiled.

Aideen turned her hand towards the sky and took a deep breath.

When she breathed out, a huge gush of fire came out with it, going several meters up into the sky.

"WOW!" Izzy flew up and down in excitement.

Izzy immediately tried it, with Aideen barely getting out of the way as it headed in her direction.

"Next time... warn me please!" Aideen exclaimed angrily.

Izzy stopped in surprise at Aideen's tone. "But I thought fire couldn't hurt us like that!" she exclaimed in surprise.

"Not as much as it would hurt other people, but beware where you aim that, lest we **both** end up like Zuko from The Last Airbender." Aideen said.

"I love that show!"Izzy flew up and down in excitement.

"My grandchildren love that show as well. It is amazing how close they came to representing the Fire Element accurately... Anyway, let's move on, shall we?" Aideen was suddenly fully engulfed in fire.

"WOW!" Izzy exclaimed.

Aideen brought her hands together in front of her and the fire from her body all became concentrated on her hands.

Izzy had the good sense to get out of the way before a large flaming dragon appeared and smashed directly into the wall that she had been standing in front of earlier.

She hovered in the spot, stunned.

Aideen actually looked unnerved at the fact that Izzy was actually being quiet.

"Um, Izzy, are you all right?" she asked, worried.

Izzy did not answer.

"Izzy? IZZY? ISABELLA?" She shouted, waving a hand in front of her face.

"That was... AWESOME!" Izzy zoomed into the air on a giant sphere of fire, did a complete circle of the volcano and came back in.

"I have to agree with you there, lass. It is indeed... awesome." Aideen smiled.

"Follow my lead and you will also learn how to do this." Aideen held her hands in the air above her.

Izzy did the same.

She was soon engulfed in flame again and she repeated what she had done before, producing another flaming dragon.

Izzy did the same movements and was successful.

"Woo! I did it!" Izzy cheered.

Aideen smiled at her successor's glee.

"Well done, but there is plenty more to learn. Actually turning ourselves into fire for example."

"I look forward to that!" Izzy rubbed her hands together in glee... and ended up sending fireworks out of them.

"Oopsie! Heh-heh." Izzy laughed nervously.

Aideen face palmed.

"You really should be careful with that..." Aideen pointed out.

"Let's move onto the Fire Shield." Aideen moved her hands into a swirling motion in front of her and a ring of fire appeared around her on the ground, growing in height until it formed a half dome around her.

"Fire Shield. It is not as resistant to attacks as your friend Gwen's Energy Shield would be, but it would definitely prevent people from coming near you. You used a partial form of it in your last training session in the form of the kind of shield that you'd hold in front of you, like soldiers in battle use. This one however, would protect you from all around. Why don't you try this now?"

Izzy mimicked the movements that she had seen Aideen do and was successful.

"Flame shield, go!" Izzy laughed... and somehow made flame balls emerge from it and fire themselves at Aideen who barely dodged out of the way.

"Anyway, let's continue shall we?" Aideen made her entire left arm into pure flame, right up to her shoulder.

Izzy managed to copy her exactly.

Aideen continued to change the rest of her body into flame until it was complete flame and Izzy did the same, clapping as she finished.

"Woo hoo! I am Izzy the Firestarter! Hear me roar!" Izzy began chanting and doing a silly dance which made Aideen laugh.

"_Ay, Izzy. You're a weird one aren't you?_" Aideen thought to her.

"_All the interesting people in the world are weird, whether good weird or bad!_" Izzy thought back.

Aideen thought to herself for a moment. "_That actually sounded moderately philosophical!_"Aideen replied.

"_Thanks._" Izzy was idly making shapes from the fire and managed to create a flaming sword. Its handle curved around her hand and the blade looked at least a meter long and resembled that of a scimitar.

Aideen watched this carefully.

"Wow. You actually learned the next trick I was about to teach you- the Fire Sword." She created one as well.

"Great minds think alike don't they?" Izzy said, moving it around in slashing motions.

"_I prefer to think that my mind doesn't think like yours._.." Aideen thought.

"Try cutting through something. Or carving an image in the wall." Aideen instructed.

Izzy turned to the wall behind her and with a look of utmost concentration, began carving an image into the wall, humming as she worked.

When she finished and stepped back to let Aideen see, Aideen gasped in surprise.

Izzy had actually managed to do an extremely lifelike image of her and Owen, she in her Keeper form, holding him close to her as they flew through the sky.

Izzy looked at it and sighed.

"You miss him, don't you?" Aideen asked.

Another sigh. "Yes. Apparently Brainzilla broke up with him in Jamaica. I don't know why I did that!" Izzy punched the wall in frustration, putting a hole in it.

"Perhaps next time you see him, you can make amends?" Aideen suggested. "I do not know if it will work, but you can always try and see what happens!"

Izzy brightened up. "I will! And I'm going to see him sooner than he thinks too!" she exclaimed.

"That's my successor!" Aideen cheered.

"Why don't we try melting things?" Aideen focused on a nearby rock and her hand began to glow red.

The rock started to crack and then started to melt.

Aideen moved her hand down and as she did, the rock melted.

"Your turn, Izzy." She gestured to another rock.

Izzy focused her magic on the rock and succeeded.

"Woo! This is fun!" Izzy cheered.

Aideen smiled.

"Absorbing fire." She said, sending a fire ball towards another rock.

Izzy eyed it as it burned.

"To put out a fire or at least bring it under control so others can put it out, you have to absorb it." Aideen explained.

With that, she began to glow. The fire from the rock formed a sort of trail in mid air as it headed towards her.

Aideen glowed even brighter as the fire surrounded her. Bit by bit, the fire disappeared.

Aideen dusted off her hands. "That may seem easy, but it certainly is not. That was only a small amount of fire. Absorbing or for that matter, manipulating large amounts of fire is difficult and it can really take a lot of energy from you. I would suggest only doing that when you have no other options." She said.

Izzy nodded and proceeded to do what Aideen had done, pulling it off perfectly.

"That was brilliant, Izzy!" Aideen cheered.

"Now, we get to even more of the fun stuff..."

* * *

Heather and Deanna were in the treetops of the forest they were in before.

"Swing, swing, _**swing!**_" Deanna chanted at Heather.

Heather was using her powers to manipulate the vines around them to swing. Every time she let one go, she summoned another vine to swing on instead of flying. Deanna was alongside her, doing the same.

When Heather let go of the last vine, she did a back flip in mid air, landed on her hands and flipped over again, this time landing on her feet. Deanna followed.

"Not bad, Heather. Not bad at all..." Deanna said.

"Thanks." Heather brushed herself off.

"Let's move on, shall we?" Deanna reached out her hand and before Heather had time to react, a large stone hand emerged from the ground directly below her, grabbed her legs when Deanna clenched her hand and pulled her halfway into the ground.

"**What the-?**" Heather exclaimed in surprise. "_What was that?_" she thought.

"Never lose your guard. And to answer your thought... _That I call the Stone Grab. Lame, I know, but if you want creativity, you ask Akari or Aideen for that..._" Deanna continued mentally.

"So... how do I get out?" Heather asked impatiently, folding her arms.

"It's simple really. Just stretch out your arms and focus on the rock falling apart!" Deanna instructed.

"Yeah. _Real_ simple." Heather muttered, doing as Deanna instructed, glowing dark green as she did.

When she had fully extricated herself, she tried replicating the Stone Grab spell.

Deanna extended a tree branch to herself and darted out of the way.

"Too slow!" she taunted.

Heather growled and made the stone hand go even farther.

"Missed me!" Deanna startled Heather by hanging upside down from a tree branch which suddenly appeared in front of her.

Deanna did this for a while, moving around and around while the stone hand plowed up the ground everywhere Heather commanded it to go.

Deanna taunted Heather again and this time, the Queen Bee decided that she had had enough.

She held her hands in the air above her and began to glow green.

Before Deanna could react, the hand had grown so tall that it managed to knock her out of a nearby tree. She did a flip in mid air and landed smoothly.

Heather did a little bow and smirked at her predecessor who had an expression of mild surprise on her face.

"Getting better and better I must say!" Deanna said, with only the tiniest hint of a smile.

Heather's smirk only grew wider.

"We can move onto Crystallokinesis now." Deanna said.

"Crystallo-what?" Heather leaned her head to a side slightly, confused.

"Gemstone Manipulation. It may seem like a pretty, flashy thing but it certainly isn't easy. In fact I myself never used it that often in my time as Earth Keeper!" Deanna's hand glowed green before a giant, rounded, emerald stone appeared in her palm.

Heather's eyes shone in excitement.

"Most times I'd only use this if I wanted a new piece of jewellery or wanted to repair an old piece. Still, it can come in handy in a fight, I must admit. Like Marjani noted in the Earth Element Book, gemstones are extremely sharp, the diamond especially." Deanna changed the gemstone she held from an emerald to a diamond.

"Woah." Heather was in awe.

Deanna held her hands apart and the diamond held in place.

She jerked apart her hands even more and it began to divide into several segments.

She held up her hand and directed them towards Heather who managed to deflect them with her metal claws, moving them so blindingly fast that every time a piece of the diamond was deflected, it hit the tree Deanna had been standing in front of before.

"Wow. That was good, Heather." Deanna said. "Now why don't you try manipulating the gemstones instead of merely deflecting them?" Deanna said, making another diamond and also separating it into segments.

This time Heather held her hands in front of her as the segments came hurtling towards her.

They stopped, floating in front of her and with a sweep of her arm; she directed them towards a nearby tree.

Deanna nodded in approval.

"Let's move on. You see Heather, we can change into our Element and that's what's next on the agenda. The Rock Fist was a partial form of that. You can change your _entire _body into rock, metal or even plant." Deanna demonstrated by becoming entirely stone, essentially looking like a perfect statue version of her human self.

"The only disadvantage is that you cannot fly when like this." Deanna said as she changed back into her regular self.

Without a word, Heather also turned herself into stone, pulling it off perfectly.

"They'd be insane trying to hit you when you are like this." Deanna commented as Heather changed back.

"I noticed that you are more partial to Metal Manipulation. Why don't you try that?"Deanna said, turning herself into metal.

Heather also managed to pull off that change.

They both changed back.

"As a partial form of that, you can also morph your hands alone into swords like this."

Deanna shook her hands and they morphed into blades resembling katana blades.

Heather followed suit.

"Now, think fast!" Deanna rushed at Heather swinging her sword-hands.

Heather went wide-eyed briefly before reacting.

She criss-crossed her hands to block Deanna's shots.

"Come on, Heather. I know you can do better than that!" Deanna said, making a few more vicious jabs.

Heather uncrossed her hands and began to fight back, equally as vicious as Deanna had.

This went on for a few minutes before Heather got in the last swipe, poking Deanna slightly in the nose.

Deanna went wide-eyed as her nose started to bleed slightly.

She shook her hands to make them normal again and wiped the blood away from her nose.

"And I was right. You _can_ do better than what you did before." Deanna commented.

Heather smirked as she changed her hands back to normal.

"Stone Golems." Deanna raised her hands.

As soon as she did, the ground started to tremble.

Heather watched in shock as one by one, several stone statues emerged from the ground, all resembling soldiers.

Deanna began to glow green and so did the soldiers.

"I believe that the Energy, Water and Fire Keepers can make golems out of their Elements as well." She said.

They began to move and turned to look at Deanna.

"Hey Keeper Deanna! What's up?" one began to speak.

Heather's jaw dropped in shock.

Deanna chuckled at this.

"Soldiers! I want you to meet your new Chief, Keeper Heather!" Deanna said, gesturing to her.

They all turned to her and bowed.

"Earth Keeper Heather, it is truly a delight to be at your service!" they said.

Heather still couldn't speak.

"Still speechless, huh?" Deanna landed beside her from a tree.

Heather nodded.

"Okay guys, back to where you came from! It's Heather's turn to learn how to summon you!" Deanna flicked her hand and they all returned to the ground.

"_Holy shit._" Heather whispered in awe.

Deanna laughed.

"Seriously though. You need to get over that and learn how to summon the Stone Golems..." she said.

Heather shook her head to clear it.

"You know what you need to do. Concentrate. Imagine the Stone Golems coming to life to serve you. You need them to help you fight. Come on!" Deanna said.

"**I'm trying, dammit!**" Heather shouted.

Soon enough, the Stone Golems re-emerged, this time greeting her.

"Okay guys." Heather said. "Show me what you got!" she commanded.

As Heather presided over her Stone Golems, Deanna watched with a critical eye.

"_Looks like Heather really is getting into the role of being the Earth Keeper. I guess she's just more than a spoiled brat. Perhaps I was too quick to judge..._" Deanna thought.

* * *

Lindsay and Akari were in mid flight, just above their usual training spot, the mountain.

"You see, Lindsay, you can actually manipulate the air around you to gain... how do I explain it?" Akari paused. "Oh yes! You can make a blast of air so powerful, so... sharp, that you could slice through some things!" she exclaimed.

"Great! So how do I do it, Akari?" Lindsay asked.

"_Wow. Lindsay remembered my name. She actually remembered my name!_" Akari cheered internally.

"Watch me."

Akari clasped her hands together and Lindsay could feel the air pulsating around it. She then turned towards a nearby tree and brought down her hands, the air splitting the tree right down the middle.

"See?" Akari pointed to the tree.

"Ah. Okay. Can I try now?" Lindsay asked.

"Be my guest!" Akari said.

Lindsay brought her hands together in the same motion that Akari had and brought it down onto another nearby tree, which split the same way Akari's had.

"That was good, Lindsay!" Akari said, smiling.

"Let's move onto the Air Bubble. The Water Keeper can breathe underwater due to the water being a part of her. You on the other hand, would be able to breathe anywhere as long as you use an air bubble. Underwater, in space, wherever. Just use one of these!" Akari flicked her hand and air swirled around her head, forming a bubble shaped barrier.

"Cool!" Lindsay cheered. "My turn!" she copied Akari's movements and managed to pull off the Air Bubble perfectly.

Akari smiled at Lindsay's glee.

"Enough of that. Let's move on to tornadoes." Akari hovered in the air slightly before starting to spin. She spun rapidly, gaining speed until a large tornado formed around her.

Lindsay stepped back hesitantly as Akari flew out of the tornado and sent it towards her.

"Come on Lindsay! Face it head on!" Akari shouted.

"Like, no way!" Lindsay whined, flying out of the way as the tornado went down the side of the mountain.

Akari face palmed.

"Come back here!" she yelled up to her.

Lindsay flew back down, looking sheepish.

"_Now._" Akari said this with the air of one trying to control their temper.

"You can't run away from your Element!" Akari exclaimed.

"I didn't **run** away, I **flew** away!" Lindsay exclaimed.

Akari paused for a moment.

"Well, technically that's true, I'll give you that. You do have to learn this though. **Sooner. **Not later." Akari insisted.

"Okay." Lindsay said, before starting to spin in mid air in her effort to create a tornado of her own.

When she succeeded in creating the tornado, she flew out of it and landed, stumbling slightly.

"Ohhh... Dizzy..." Lindsay moaned.

Akari tsk-tsked.

"Next: draining the air out of someone's lungs." Akari held her hands up towards Lindsay.

The air started coming from Lindsay's mouth and nose in great gusts.

Lindsay soon had trouble breathing.

"_Can't- breathe. Need- air!_" she gasped.

Akari flicked her hand and the air returned to Lindsay, who could now breathe normally again.

"That was no fun at all!" Lindsay whined.

"I'd be surprised if it were." Akari frowned slightly. "Now you know how damaging that can be to an enemy. Now, I'm not sure if I should let you do this, but how else are you going to learn?"

"Let me do what?" Lindsay asked innocently.

Akari raised an eyebrow at her.

"Ohhh... You want me to do that to you?" Lindsay asked, shocked.

"_Wow. She got that rather quickly..._" Akari thought. "_Maybe she isn't all that stupid after all. Who knows?_"

"It's the only way. How else will you learn?" Akari shrugged. "I'm not all that happy about it either, you know!"

"But... what if I do it wrong and like, kill you?" Lindsay shuddered at the thought.

So did Akari.

"It's just a risk we shall have to take, Lindsay." Akari said. "Now go ahead. Try it. _Now._" She insisted.

"Okay..." Lindsay raised her arms and tried to perform what Akari had done.

Akari was soon on the ground, gasping for breath.

Lindsay let up as soon as she saw this happen. She immediately flew over to her predecessor and helped her up.

"You are going to be okay, Akari?" Lindsay asked worriedly.

"Yes, Lindsay. I will be fine." Akari did a final gasp before breathing normally again. "You did well. I must compliment you on that."

"Thanks!" Lindsay beamed.

"Let's move onto Sound Manipulation, shall we?" Akari said.

Lindsay nodded.

"The easiest part of Sound Manipulation is _imitating someone else's voice_." Akari said the last few words in Lindsay's voice.

"Woah..." Lindsay was amazed.

"If you need to get through voice activated security, once you have heard the voice of the person in question and you know the password, it wouldn't be too hard." Akari said, resuming her own voice.

"That sounds easy." Lindsay said imitating Akari's voice.

"That was good!" Akari commended.

Lindsay thanked her in her own voice.

"The next thing you can do is negate sound. Otherwise known as putting something or _someone..._" Akari paused with a smile on her face as she remembered doing this to Deanna back in the days when they did not get along well. "...on mute."

She held up her hand to Lindsay and when she tried to speak again to say she didn't feel anything...

"_What's going on? Why am I not speaking?_" Lindsay thought.

"_Because I made you mute._" Akari thought back before lifting the spell.

"Next up: the Sonic Scream. Quite a painful thing to be on the receiving end of, the Sonic Scream will pretty much paralyze your enemies." Akari took in a deep breath before demonstrating.

Lindsay could see the sound waves in the air as Akari aimed towards a rock.

Even though she was not in its path, Lindsay still had to cover her ears.

"Oww! That hurt!" she wailed.

"Sorry about that. I guess it's a side effect of having the best hearing of all the Keepers." Akari said.

"We have the best hearing?" Lindsay perked up.

"Yes we do. Anyone who can manipulate sound would have extremely sharp hearing. As a matter of fact, their hearing would be so sharp that they could hear conversations or noises from far off and listen to a person's heartbeat to tell whether they were lying or not!" Akari exclaimed. "Which came in pretty handy when raising children who were almost as mischievous as I was..."

"So it's not just us that can control sound?" Lindsay asked.

"Not at all!" Akari answered. "It isn't exactly an Elemental power, after all. In fact, my oldest grandson Haru as well as his mother Akina has this ability as well!"

"Wow." Lindsay said.

"Wow indeed." Akari nodded in agreement.

"You can also change the volume of sound. Start singing or shouting or something so I can demonstrate." She instructed.

"Okay!" Lindsay then began singing loudly, something Akari was coming to regret ever telling her to do.

"_I WHIP MY HAIR BACK AND FORTH..."_

"_IT'S FRIDAY, FRIDAY, GOTTA GET DOWN ON FRIDAY..."_

"_TIK TOK, ON THE CLOCK..."_

"_And she had to pick the three most annoying songs ever made too..._" Akari thought.

Akari held up a hand and slowly, but surely, the volume of Lindsay's voice lowered to a normal tone. When Lindsay tried to sing louder, she found that she could not.

"Now I see that you really do sing as badly as they said on Total Drama Action..." Akari commented, before returning her voice to normal.

"Also included in your abilities is the ability to produce any sound you desire." Akari held up her hand and a white orb of light appeared in it.

It shook for a few minutes before it started playing a beautiful melody.

"That is so awesome..." Lindsay said, watching it in awe.

"Now, why don't you have a go?" Akari said, making the orb disappear.

* * *

As Marissa and Bridgette stood at the entrance of the cave waiting for the help to arrive, a procession of vehicles pulled up to them.

"_What is this?_" Bridgette thought.

"_Oh, just the Canadian consulate. You all are Canadian Citizens obviously..__._" Marissa thought back.

"_I must hide. They cannot all know that I am here. Not all of them are magic!_" Marissa ran off.

"_So wait, some of them are magic?_" Bridgette thought.

"_You'll see._" Marissa cut off the Link.

Billy was in one of the cars.

"My brother... that bear killed my brother!" Billy shouted in terror, pointing to Bruno who was trying to hide behind her.

Some locals who had joined the search party jumped out with guns and spears and started advancing on her.

"NO!" Bridgette flung out her hands to protect Bruno.

They raised their eyebrows at this.

"He didn't know what he was doing!" she insisted.

One of the officials jumped out of a car and went up to her. He was tall, brown-skinned and his deep, dark brown eyes reminded her of Marissa.

"_Related maybe?_" she thought.

He stood there, studying her for a moment and then glanced behind her to see Bruno, actually looking quite sheepish.

"Leave him." He said.

"But Mr. Bryan..." one of the others started.

"Look. The bear isn't doing anything to her now! I mean, look at him! Ms. Summers is standing right next to him and she is coming to no harm..."

"Travis is right." A pale-skinned woman with wild, curly red hair and brilliant green eyes stepped forward. She was also pregnant.

The one who had objected nodded and went back to his van.

"_Wait, you never said that your son was coming!_" Bridgette thought.

"_Was I supposed to?_" Bridgette could hear the smirk in Marissa's thought.

"_And the woman... she looks familiar too..._" Bridgette thought.

"_I'm surprised that Travis let Milah come all the way out there in that state!_" Marissa said. "_Wait until Aideen hears about this! She may be quiet, but when it comes to her children..._"

"_Wait, this woman is Aideen's daughter?_" Bridgette exclaimed in surprise.

"_Yep. That's Jamilah Number 2. Aideen named her after Erendor's Immortal. We usually call her Milah though._" Marissa explained.

"Ms. Summers, my name is Travis Bryan and I work for Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, which is responsible for consular services. This is my wife Jamilah-" he gestured to the pregnant redhead, who waved. "We were in the area when we heard of your plight, so we gathered a team of officials and locals to help you and your crew."

"Call me Bridgette. And thanks for your help." She smiled.

"It's no problem honey. Now let's get inside our vehicle and get the hell out of here!" Milah exclaimed, leading her into the nearest car.

The crew cheered as everyone was finally inside the various vehicles and they began to move off.

* * *

Gwen and Heather were with Hasim in Economy Class. He had taken Izzy and Lindsay back to Playa Des Losers before.

"It certainly has been an exciting time for you hasn't it?" Hasim commented.

"I agree. Not necessarily good, especially on Bridgette's part, but, well you know what I mean..." Gwen replied.

"If he can do all of that, I can only imagine what it would be like when Radcliffe rolls out his final assault..." Heather said.

"True." Hasim nodded in agreement. "But if several generations of Keepers have managed to beat him before, why can't you?" Hasim said, before disappearing.

"Come to think of it, that _is _a pretty pathetic track record, isn't it?" Gwen said.

"Yeah, seriously. You think he'd learn by now..." Heather muttered.

* * *

At Playa Des Losers 2, after time had resumed, Lindsay was helping Izzy pack for her return into the game.

Izzy was throwing things wildly into the suitcase while Lindsay was using telekinesis to neatly fold them and place them in gently.

"I wonder how they're going to announce my arrival into the game! Ooh, ooh, ooh! I wonder what destination we're going to be at when I debut!" Izzy said excitedly.

"Chip is probably going to turn some really nice place into a place of torture for everyone else..." Lindsay muttered.

"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! And Owen! I wonder how he's going to react to seeing me!" Izzy said, getting even more excited than before.

"Um, Isa, your hair..." Lindsay pointed to Izzy's hair which was indeed on fire.

"Oh. Right." Izzy shook it and it returned to normal.

Soon the two girls heard an extremely cheerful humming outside in the hall and glanced outside to see who it was.

"_COURTNEY?_" They both thought in surprise.

"Wasn't she just a while ago all angry and stuff?" Lindsay commented.

"Who knows? With Courtney things are rather unpredictable!" Izzy exclaimed.

Other contestants nearby came up when they heard Courtney humming.

All of them had looks of shock on their faces when they saw that it was indeed Courtney humming.

"_Hold on- Lindsay do you see that?_" Izzy grabbed onto Lindsay's arm suddenly.

"_See what?_" Lindsay asked.

"_Courtney's skin!_" Izzy exclaimed.

They were extremely faint, but with both Keepers having extremely sharp vision, they could still see them.

_The grey symbols Courtney had in her fairy form were still there..._

* * *

With this chapter, I'd say, according to my plans and my projected chapter list, we are officially halfway through Keepers of the Elements. I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed/messaged me so far and who I hope will continue to do so!


	21. Niagara Brawls

I had fun writing this! Hope you'll like it too!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1

* * *

Alejandro, Duncan and Owen were in First Class, discussing the events of what happened in Sweden.

"I tell you man, Gwen's got a wicked right hook! I wish she didn't use it on me though. My cheek still feels sore!" Duncan said, touching the cheek Gwen slapped him on and wincing as she did.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Duncan: **"This is all Alejandro's fault. I mean seriously, who came up with that idea? 'Make Courtney think I'm jealous of Alejandro when he fake flirts with Crazy In Training'. Look what it got me!" He pointed to his cheek where the swelling was going down but was still visible.

**Alejandro:** "I happened to 'overhear' what Duncan said. It is not my fault that your suggestion backfired, _mi_ _amigo..._ I am, however enjoying the results of it _very much!_" He smirked evilly.

* * *

"_I mean, Courtney is officially out of the game, which certainly helps my chances of winning the million. Heather went practically nuts last episode fighting with Sierra, Gwen is upset with Duncan, which will probably interfere with her Keeper duties... Whoever said that winning this game and working for Radcliffe at the same time was impossible?_" Alejandro thought, while munching on a cookie.

"_Damn, these things are good! With these around I'll have to watch my weight..._" he thought when he finished.

"So guys, where do you think we will be going next?" Owen asked, while making himself a Swedish meatball (which were actually well cooked!) sandwich.

"Mi amigo grande, I haven't the faintest idea. El Diablo Chris McLean may very well be taking us to the bottom of the sea, for all I know." Alejandro answered.

"Don't give him any ideas!" Duncan hissed.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chris McLean: **"Ha, ha! Too late Duncan! Alejandro is close... _but_ not quite." He grinned.

* * *

"And Owen, next time you decide to throw something, watch where you thr-" Duncan was cut off as Owen actually found a meatball that was bad and threw it behind him.

It hit Duncan in the kiwis.

"Ow. _Mommy!_" Duncan screeched in a high pitched voice before toppling over, clutching said kiwis in pain.

Alejandro burst out laughing at the delinquent's plight.

Barely a few moments after this, he was sitting at the bar while Owen was in a nearby chair eating something else and began to feel lightheaded.

"_What is this? Why am I suddenly feeling so..._" he fell off the stool, unconscious.

* * *

In Economy Class, Heather and Gwen were on one side of the benches and Cody and Sierra were on the other. Heather and Gwen were very weirded out at this.

No, not at the fact that Cody and Sierra were on the same side, but that they were on the same side _peacefully._

Sierra was _not_ bothering Cody in any way and Cody was not nervous around her as he normally appeared to be.

Cody was listening to music and bopping his head to the beat while Sierra was writing quite calmly in a rather thick looking book, humming what (to Gwen!) sounded like an overly cheerful song.

Heather and Gwen looked up to see a slight glimmer when Sierra shifted the book slightly, but as soon as she saw them looking, she hid it.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"Sierra, _**not**_ acting all crazy around Cody? Writing in a book calmly, while sitting right next to him? Something is _**not**_ right!" She went wide eyed as she said this.

**Gwen: **"So... Sierra not being all creepy around Cody. While it is... nice for a change, it is also freaking me out!" She shuddered.

* * *

"_Weird!_" Heather and Gwen thought in unison.

"_What is?_" Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay thought back, also in unison.

The two remaining Keepers in the game sent an image of what they were seeing to the others.

"_Wow. That is creepy!_" Bridgette commented.

"_How is getting out of Siberia going, Bridgette?_" Gwen asked.

"_We hit some immigration obstacles seeing as I technically did not enter the country legally..._" she started.

"_Oh no!_" Lindsay exclaimed.

"_Through no fault of yours!_" Izzy exclaimed.

"_I know. But they wouldn't budge on that! Luckily Marissa got in touch with one of her sons, Travis. He works for the Canadian Consulate and as soon as she called him, he got the quickest flight over here!_" Bridgette exclaimed happily.

"_That's brilliant!_" Gwen cheered.

"_I only wish we could get out faster, using magic. But since people saw this live on television, it's going to take about a week or so before I can return to Canada!_" Bridgette said, somewhat sadly.

"_At least you're still alive!_" Heather spoke up.

"_True..._" Bridgette acknowledged.

"_Lindsay, I guess you're on your own now at Playa Des Losers for now!_" Izzy exclaimed.

"_What do you mean by that?_" Heather asked, suspicious.

"_Oops..._" Izzy said, with an air of a child who has just broken their mother's favourite vase.

"_Izzy has said too much! Izzy has to go! Bye!_" Izzy suddenly dropped off the Link.

"_I'm going to go get ready to watch you guys with the others. Bye!_" Lindsay too, dropped off the Link.

"_I should go as well. Good luck!_" Bridgette also left.

"_What was that all about?_" Gwen and Heather looked at each other weirdly.

Gwen got up and began to walk around, to stretch her legs and Heather began reading a magazine she had found in the cargo hold.

Soon, Sierra looked up from what she was doing, glanced around the room and put away the book and the pen she was writing with.

She yawned.

"Why do I feel so tired?" she asked the room at large.

"**Probably because you were searching my luggage all night!**" Cody exclaimed. He began to yawn as well.

"I was looking for your stuffed dog, Nelson. I heard you had a whole collection of stuffed animals!" Sierra exclaimed.

Gwen and Heather snickered and started to yawn.

"I DO NOT!" Cody exclaimed, embarrassed.

"Don't deny it, Cody. It's best if you face it _**straight on.**_" She said in her creepy voice before sliding down the bench, falling asleep.

"I do not hav-" Cody also fell asleep.

"Why do I feel so tired all of a _*yawn*_ sudden?" Gwen asked, moments before crumbling to the floor, asleep.

"Why is everyone so _*yawn*_ tire-" Heather fell asleep.

* * *

"Ohhh CRAP! WAKE UP! WAKE UP EVERYBODYYYYYYYYYY!" Owen shrieked as all the contestants woke up, falling from the plane.

"What the _***censored***_?" Heather exclaimed in surprise.

"What's going on?" Gwen asked.

When she looked down to see the water below them and the distance they were above it, she began to scream in terror, as did all the other contestants...

"_***Spanish censored*Spanish censored*Spanish censored*!**_" Alejandro panicked.

"I cannot die like this! My glorious, handsome looks, drowned by a merciless body of water!" he shouted.

Heather raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh please. You're starting to sound like Justin!"

"That old has-been? Please, don't insult me!" Alejandro said, indignant.

"Hey kids! You'd better get into your paddle boats!" Chris yelled from the Drop of Shame.

All of the contestants continued flailing and screaming until they grabbed hold on one of two boats designed like swans.

Heather, Alejandro, Duncan and Cody landed in one while Sierra, Owen and Gwen landed in the other.

"I'm starting to really dislike Chris, just a little..." Sierra said, soaking wet, as was everyone else.

Owen glanced behind him and grew wide-eyed.

"Uh, wa-wa-WATER!" Owen yelled, terrified.

"Yes, Owen. We all know it's water. _Hooray._" Gwen muttered.

Everyone else looked in the direction that Owen was staring at and gasped.

"Wa-wa..." Heather stammered.

"WATERFALL!" Alejandro yelled.

"Quick, paddle!" he commanded. Heather, Duncan and Alejandro began to paddle vigorously in theirs while Sierra and Gwen did in the other.

"WE'RE GONNA DIE!" Owen wailed, clutching his hair.

"If you let us live, I'll forgive any showoff, Gary-Stu type guys who have tried using their attitude on me. Even _**Al**_!" Heather exclaimed, looking towards the sky.

Alejandro winced at the use of his loathed nickname. "If you let us live, I'll forget she said that!" he retorted.

"If we live, I'll let Sierra kiss me!" Cody exclaimed.

Everyone froze and turned to look at him, temporarily forgetting the waterfall.

"What?" Cody shrugged. "Like we're gonna make it!"

Sierra had a wild look in her eye. She gasped.

"I-WANT-MY-KISS!" she screamed/shouted.

She stood up quickly and before Owen could react, she had him tied around the waist with a rope and threw him out to the other swan boat. He clung to it in fright.

Sierra held the rope with her teeth and started paddling so fast that the contestants barely had any time to scream before they all ran aground, throwing everyone roughly out of the boats.

Duncan seemed to get the worst of it as he had slammed straight into a rock.

"_Not cool!_" he whimpered in pain.

* * *

Once everyone had recovered (albeit still soaking wet) Chris decided to greet them, with the grin on his face that they had all grown to know- and hate.

"You evil, evil being." Gwen muttered, pointing at him and giving him the evil eye.

Chris waved her off.

"So, Niagara Falls is pretty awesome, eh?" he asked them.

"**It almost killed us!**" Heather exclaimed.

"Like I said... awesome!" Chris continued. "The Falls is the jewel in Canada's crown. And is one of the top 10 natural wonders of the world!"

"_After that experience, I don't think very highly of it anymore..._" Heather thought.

"_And it only gets worse from here..._" Gwen thought back.

"_Ugh. Don't remind me!_" Heather replied.

"_Don't be like that! It looked like fun! Wish I was there..._" Izzy said dreamily.

"_You would..._" they grumbled in unison.

"It's also known for its fabulous casinos which is where you'll be heading for the first part of the challenge!" Chris exclaimed.

Everyone had gleeful looks on their faces.

"Seriously?" Duncan was practically grinning.

* * *

"Seriously?" Duncan said again, although this time, he and everyone else were disappointed.

"Since you're all underage, we had to move the challenge from the gambling floor to the far less exciting... **casino** **concert hall!**"

"Yay." Gwen said in a sarcastic tone waving her hands in the air.

"Ooh! I wonder if anyone is performing!" Owen exclaimed excitedly.

"You're in luck, Owen, my man. Last time on the Aftermath show, they had a Second Chance challenge, where one of the losers can score a spot back in the game and we're about to enjoy a little number from the winner." Chris said.

"_Hmmm..._" Gwen and Heather thought in unison.

"Let's hope it's not Courtney!" Cody exclaimed, shuddering slightly.

"That **would** suck!" Duncan agreed.

"Indeed it would." Gwen nodded.

"She's a whole lotta crazy in one person and she's known by several aliases which are all too numerous to mention. It's... IZZY!" Chris exclaimed.

Everyone gasped in shock.

"¿¡Qué!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"WHAT?" Gwen exclaimed.

"_Oh no..._" Heather face-palmed.

* * *

After Chris called Izzy's name, Izzy was nowhere to be seen.

"Where IS she?" Chris asked, annoyed.

Owen tapped his fingers together nervously. "Maybe she went to buy souvenirs?" he asked.

"_Or maybe..._"Gwen thought.

Izzy suddenly popped up out of nowhere behind Chris, holding the barrel she was supposed to be standing on and dumped it on top of Chris with a mighty battle cry.

"**HEY! WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?**" Chris shouted angrily, banging loudly from inside the barrel.

"_I'd like to know that too..._" Heather thought, watching in shock as were the rest of the contestants.

"_Oh, just something I've been wanting to do for a long, long time..._" Izzy thought back.

And with that, she ran to a nearby window, kicked it open and then jump-kicked the barrel straight out the window, right into the waterfall.

The contestants (and Chef!) stood there wide-eyed and stunned for a moment before bursting out into cheers and applause.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chef Hatchett: **"That was... GREAT!" He wiped the tears of laughter from his eyes. "Gotta give crazy girl credit for that one!"

**Gwen: **She was doubled up in laughter. "I thought something like that would happen when I heard Izzy was going to be the one coming back and all... I just never expected it so soon..."

**Alejandro: **He was laughing hysterically but soon calmed down. "So. La _chica loca_ has made her re-entrance. Makes things a little harder for me, but I think I could take her..." He smiled evilly.

* * *

Everyone else continued laughing... until Chef Hatchett decided to shut them up.

"YO MAGGOTS! FRONT AND CENTER!" he yelled- even though he had a microphone.

The contestants screamed in pain.

Once they had recovered, Izzy was running around madly, greeting some of the contestants.

"Sierra! My crazy friend, how are ya?" she shook Sierra's hands so hard that the latter was lifted into the air with each shake.

"Gwen, the gloomy gal! HI!" she waved vigorously at Gwen, who waved back slowly, weirded out.

"HEATHER!" Izzy jumped up suddenly behind her, startling the Earth Keeper.

"DON'T DO THAT!" Heather shouted angrily.

And last, but not least...

"OWEN!" Izzy exclaimed, jumping onto his shoulders.

"**_I'm so excited to see you again I'm so sorry I.. _.**" Izzy chattered excitedly and rapidly.

Owen leaned his head on a side, puzzled.

"What did you just say?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Izzy said, slowing down.

"What I meant to say was I'm sorry that Brainzilla broke up with you in Jamaica and she's really, _really _upset about it and Izzy hopes you'll give her another chance..."

"Well, I don't know..." Owen was hesitant.

"_**Please?**_" Izzy gave him puppydog eyes, complete with sappy background music.

"Well..."

Izzy's eyes grew wider and the music grew even louder.

"I guess we could give it another shot..." Owen soon succumbed to Izzy's puppydog look.

"YAY!" Izzy jumped around in glee.

Chef tapped his foot impatiently.

"Yo, crazy! You were supposed to sing a song, remember?" he said, as the bell chimed.

"Oh. _Right..._" Izzy pouted.

* * *

_A tune which sounded suspiciously like Fergielicious by Fergie began to play in the background._

_Izzy was suddenly standing on top of a fountain of water which propelled her into the air. She did a backflip and as she did, she began to sing._

**Izzy: **Izzytastic is my name! Explosives are my game! _(She held up a bomb and threw it at the other contestants who screamed and ran for cover as it exploded.)_ Back in this game to win with my Izzyrific brain!

**Owen: **The Izzytastic! S-s-so fantastic! _(He made a bottle figure with his hands.)_

**Izzy: **I-I-I'm ba-ack! This is gonna be fun! _(She rubbed her hands together in glee)_

**Gwen (in a monotone): **Yay, oh yay, Miss Crazy's back! Is she here to make us crack?

**Chef (popping up in front of Gwen suddenly, startling her): **Maybe she is, maybe she's not. All I know is Chris' ratings won't flop!

**Owen:** I-I-Izzytastic! _(He smiles like a lovesick idiot as Izzy walks past.)_

**Heather: **_(She pretends to gag.) _S-s-so PSYCHO! _(She runs off terrified as Izzy threatens her with another bomb.)_

_The scene suddenly changed to what looked like an explosives and weaponry shop with sticks of dynamite and AK-47's hanging on the black-painted walls. Duncan was standing by the door and Alejandro was leaning in a corner._

**Izzy: **Okay, I'm going to need 100 C4's, 93 M67 grenades and 212 ceramic grenades... _(She noticed the wide-eyed expressions on Alejandro's and Duncan's faces.) _What? _(She shrugged.)_ You know I like my explosives!

_A thick, grizzled hand wearing a black fingerless glove hands her several large, bulging bags and Izzy walks off happily._

**Alejandro: **I hope she doesn't use those on us!

**Duncan: **If she did, war would be a must!

_The scene changed to her walking on top of the stage._

**Izzy: **I'm excited! Excited!

**Cody: **As long as she doesn't kill us, it's good!

**Sierra: **_**If she tries, I'll have her hide!**_

_The scene changed to her experimenting with some of the bombs she bought in a laboratory with goggles on._

**Izzy:** It's a fact and scientific that I'm so Izzytastic! _(One of the C4's exploded, sending her running for cover.)_

**Gwen and Heather (trying to put out the resulting flames with fire extinguishers):** S-s-she's psycho! So-so-so psycho!

* * *

"So, I'm back on Team Chris is Really, Really, Really Ugly, huh, Cheffy?" Izzy asked.

"Actually, from what I've read of mop-head's notes, there are no teams for this point on!" Chef said.

The Amazons burst out cheering.

"No more having to work with Gwen!" Heather said gleefully.

"No more having to work with Heather!" Gwen shouted happily.

The two turned to glare at each other.

Duncan, Alejandro and Owen high-fived.

"Well gentlemen, it has been an honour to have made it this far with you. I trust we can continue this brotherhood in some manner?" Alejandro asked, shaking hands with the other two.

"Of course!" Duncan said.

"Absolutely!" Owen said.

When Alejandro walked off, they shared sly glances and crossed their fingers behind their backs.

The contestants turned when they heard a sudden noise coming from the stage.

Two interns, one a black guy with a red shirt like Chris' on and the other an Asian guy with green version of Chris shirt were pushing out a giant slot machine.

"Since we're in the honeymoon capital of the world, Chris decided to have a few arranged marriages as part of the challenge." Chef said.

Cody's expression immediately turned to one of worry as Sierra sidled up to him, a wide grin on her face.

Chef walked up to the machine. "_Slots_ of fun for him, not so much for you..."

He tugged the lever and as the slots spun, he explained. "Each girl will pull the lever to win a husband who she'll team up with for today's challenge."

All three slots landed on Cody's picture.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **She pulled a paper bag out of her pocket and began to hyperventilate. "H-h-husband?" She hyperventilated more. "C-C-Cody?" She fanned herself. "EEE!" She fell off the side of the toilet.

* * *

Chef stood on top of the slot machine, trying to shove the guys in, all of whom were protesting and crying out in pain until he finally got them inside, by stomping up and down on top of them.

A bear in a cage was lowered from the roof. The four girls eyed it wearily.

"Um, what's the bear for?" Heather asked hesitantly.

"Chris wanted it to make things more exciting." Chef shrugged as the bear was dropped into the machine and screams were heard inside from the terrified guys.

"You really don't want to land on him..." he commented.

"_No... really?_" Heather and Gwen thought angrily.

"Let the games begin!" Chef was handed a clipboard by the Asian intern and glanced at it. "Sierra, you're up first!"

"Come on! Mama needs a new pair of CODIES!" she exclaimed, pushing down the lever as hard as she could.

Alejandro's picture came up and Sierra gasped.

"NO!" she slammed the door on his arm with muffled protests from him. ("Ayúdame por favor! Estoy atrapado! **(1)**)

"Sierra, you've won..." Chef was startled when Sierra lifted him into the air by the collar with one hand and shook him.

Everyone went wide-eyed at this.

"This isn't happening... THIS ISN'T HAPPENING!" She shook him vigorously.

Heather stepped up to the machine and helped Alejandro out. "I'd better take him. She won't stop until _somebody_ does..." As she walked past Gwen and Izzy, arm in arm with Alejandro, the other four Keepers commented in unison. "_Yeah, because that's the ONLY reason you took him..._"

"_Oh, SHUT UP!_" She exclaimed angrily.

This only made Gwen and Izzy grin.

Meanwhile, Sierra was drooling and making crazy noises as she tried to pull the lever again, being restrained by Chef, who was having a very hard time doing it.

"Enough with that, Crazy Girl Number 2! Back of the line for ya!" He said, finally managing to pull her away. "Crazy Girl Number 1, you're up next!"

Izzy walked up to the lever and seeing it covered in drool, pulled a green handkerchief out of her skirt and pulled it with that.

When Owen came sliding out the chute Izzy jumped up and down, clapping and cheering.

"Yay! This will give us plenty of time to catch up!" she cheered as she led him away.

"Goth chick, your turn!" Chef thumbed the machine.

Gwen shrugged and went up to it. "It's either Cody..." she trailed off as she noticed Sierra's furious look. "...Or maybe Duncan." She yanked the lever.

"_Methinks she forgot the bear..._" Heather thought, smirking as the bear came out of the machine and started chasing the Goth around.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather:** "There are times that I actually like this competition." She held up a picture of a terrified Gwen being chased by the bear and pointed at it. "And this is one of them." She chuckled.

* * *

A messy-haired, dirty-faced Gwen stood grumpily beside Sierra.

"_I swear, if I could get away with murder..._" she thought.

"_Chris isn't worth that._" Bridgette said.

"_Chip is horrible, but I wouldn't kill him!_" Lindsay commented.

"_You guys are too soft!_" Izzy said.

Gwen rolled her eyes.

"So, Goth Chick, since you're on the rebound already, it's time for husband number two!" Chef said.

"Joy..." she muttered as she pulled the lever and got Duncan.

"Goth Chick and The Delinquent. _How surprising._" Chef said sarcastically.

Sierra squealed in delight when she realized which of the guys was left.

Cody popped out of the machine and when he saw Sierra acting like that, he went right back in.

* * *

The contestants were now in another room having the challenge explained to them.

"Okay, maggots. This is how it's going down..." Chef started.

"HOLD UP!" Chris skidded into the room, soaking wet and his clothes tattered. He tried to stop, but instead skidded into a vat of mud.

Everyone burst out laughing.

Chris came out of the vat coughing and now looking like a mud monster, since he was fully coated in the substance.

"Great. The mop-headed pretty boy has returned..." Chef said, which caused the contestants to laugh even harder.

"Urgh! I'm going to have to take weeks to get this stuff off! And Chef, why aren't you wearing the dress you were supposed to?" Chris asked.

"I'm not dressing up looking like a drag queen no more, fool!" Chef huffed.

"I don't think so Chef. It's in your contract, remember?" Chris laughed.

"I don't quite think so..." Chef called for a copy of the contract and the black intern handed it to him.

He tossed it to Chris, who, after reading it went wide-eyed.

"N-NO! Who the _***censored***_ changed the contract?" he shrieked.

Chef merely smirked.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chef Hatchett: "**Think I'm taking much crap from Chris anymore? Think again!" He chuckled.

**Izzy: **She raised her eyebrows as she looked up from writing on a notepad. "Wow. Cheffy may or may not _just _make it off my 'To Kill' list! _Maybe..._" She gnawed on her pencil, reducing it to dust.

* * *

"Now why don't you get your ugly mop-head cleaned up and maybe you'll be back in time for the second part of the challenge? And no, no I will not be wearing a skirt!" Chef said.

Chris fumed and stalked out of the room.

Izzy used her powers discreetly to dry the mud around his feet so that it became hard.

He fell over; knocking his head on the door and the interns had to carry out his unconscious body.

Chef casually ignored this. "Moving along..."

The female contestants were blindfolded and the male contestants were given ladders to climb up on top of the pedestals.

"Because a good marriage is based on trust... and the ability to argue louder than your spouse, each 'groom' will use a megaphone to guide his blindfolded spouse to her gown." Chef started.

Sierra started clapping.

"Only couples with a dress can continue. GO!"

* * *

At Playa Des Losers 2, Lindsay was seated with Tyler, Leshawna and Beth watching the girls trying to get their dresses. The rest of the contestants were in various groups around the television except for Courtney, who sat alone, glaring at the others.

"Come on, Gwen! Go a little more to the left..." Duncan instructed her.

"No wait, too far!" Duncan cried out, but it was too late. Gwen had already fallen into a vat of water, emerging from it looking very bad-tempered.

Duncan actually looked worried. "Whoops! Sorry Gwen!"

Courtney on the other hand was laughing. Loudly.

The others present looked over at her with varying expressions, from weirded out to plain disgust.

"Yeah. And laughing like that makes you any better than her. Gosh!" Harold said.

"Oh shut up, you nerd!" Courtney huffed.

Leshawna made to get up but Lindsay flung out a hand to stop her.

"Cora, you really need to calm down! Being mad like that isn't going to help!" Lindsay exclaimed.

"Yeah, this is coming from the resident _air_head..." Courtney muttered.

"Don't call my girlfriend stupid!" Tyler exclaimed from across the room.

Before anyone could realize what had happened, Courtney had stormed across the room, lifted Tyler up by the collar, gave him the most evil glare she could muster and threw him roughly across the room, making him crash-land into a sofa, which toppled over.

Everyone gasped in shock.

"What are you going to do about it?" Courtney asked nonchalantly, glancing at her nails.

Lindsay was _mad._

"**Why the hell did you just do that?**" she seethed.

"**Because I can. What's it to you?**" Courtney snapped.

"**All Taylor did was ask a question!**" Lindsay snapped back.

"Methinks a catfight is about to erupt." Noah commented.

"My bet's on Courtney." Eva said, holding up a twenty dollar bill. Everyone else quickly added their bets to the pot.

"Stupid, _naïve_, little blonde girl! And you aren't even really-" Courtney was cut off as Lindsay lunged for her.

Everyone started cheering.

When the fight was over, Lindsay held up a battered looking Courtney and tossed over to the other side of the room.

"That will teach you to hurt Taylor, snap at Harold _and_ insult my hair!" she said, dusting off her hands and going over to help Tyler.

Everyone was wide-eyed.

"Talk about a secret badass! I don't think even **I** could take on Courtney in a fight! I have new respect for Lindsay..." Eva grumbled as she watched Beth and Leshawna collect their winnings.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at Niagara Falls, Chris had somehow managed to recover and get himself cleaned up.

"Stupid Chef, somehow managing to get the contract changed like that. How did he do it-" he was cut off when he was hit in the back of the head by a piece of flying cake from Izzy and Owen who were eating a huge slice of it wildly.

"Mmm! It's like- like vanilla flavoured paradise! With a hint of lemon!" Izzy commented as the other contestants watched, disgusted.

"_It's like watching my neighbors' disgusting, evil-looking Presa Canario eat his lunch!_" Heather thought.

"And now that I have fully bounced back-" Again Chris was cut off as a flying piece of cake hit him in the face. This time, Izzy had thrown it on purpose.

"IZZY!" Chris roared.

"What? You should know better than to stand in the path of flying cake!" Izzy said, shrugging.

"That was some good cake!" Owen said contentedly.

Chris sighed. "Anyway, time to explain the challenge. I like to call this challenge _'Til Death Do You Part!_" Chris said.

"Does anyone else get nervous when Chris mentions Death _**and**_ Challenge in the same sentence?" Gwen asked.

"We escaped falling down Niagara Falls just so you could make us walk over it?" Cody asked Chris. "_**On a tightrope?**_"

"Even better." Chris said. "Each couple has to make it across the falls. Then you've got to successfully clear customs. First pair to do so wins invincibility. _However,_ there's a catch." Chris laughed gleefully.

"The _joy_ of it all. I just can't wait to walk across a tightrope high over a roaring waterfall and face customs officer Chef. And that's not enough for him!" Gwen exclaimed.

"_Don't worry, Gwen. You'll be fine!_" Bridgette said.

"_Says who?_"Gwen muttered miserably.

"Normally each bride would carry their bride over the falls. This time, it's in reverse! The grooms get to be carried by the brides this time!" Chris exclaimed.

The female contestants gasped.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy: **"I don't even think super strength could help me carry _my_ chubby buddy across!"

**Heather: **"I'm supposed to carry that huge, chiseled rock... I mean evil jerk face over a tightrope? With a waterfall below us?"

**Gwen: **"Now I _know_ he wants to have us all killed."

**Sierra: **"Eee! I get to carry CODY! Eee!" She jumped up and down in excitement.

* * *

"First pair to get past customs officer Chef successfully wins invincibility and a pimped-out wedding reception in First Class. Heather and Alejandro won the challenge so I'm giving them a head start." He continued.

Heather and Alejandro glanced at each other.

"Ready Mrs. Alejandro?" Alejandro offered Heather his hand, smiling.

"Only if you are, _Mr. Heather._" Heather glared at him.

"And I _forgot_ to mention- because the falls weren't _quite_ unpleasant enough, we stocked the waterfall with hungry, hungry, man-eating sharks!" Chris grinned.

Gwen twitched.

"No, NO! I'd be like a buffet to them!" Owen wailed as Izzy patted his back to comfort him.

"There, there, Big O! I won't let you fall! Plus I got my license to kill renewed so they'd be stupid to mess with us!" Izzy exclaimed.

Aside, Duncan and Alejandro were talking.

"I know you have a fondness for that... rotund individual, but such popularity makes him a threat." Alejandro said.

"Yep. Allright. _And?_" Duncan asked, raising a pierced eyebrow.

"Join me in voting him off and you have yourself an alliance. Deal?" Alejandro asked.

"Deal." Duncan smirked.

Gwen glanced over at them and heard every word they were saying. She raised an eyebrow.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Duncan: **"So I let him think that I was going along with it. Nobody tells me what to do!"

**Alejandro: **"Sooner or later, the _overly pierced _individual is going down. _Sooner_ that is." He smirked.

**Gwen: **"So, Duncan is forming an alliance with Alejandro, is he?" She folded her arms. "He knows Alejandro is evil, so why is he doing it? Has the game gone to his head?"

* * *

"Come on, jerk face, let's go!" Heather said, lifting him up and starting.

"And remember; violence is _never _the answer. _Except_ on this show." Chris said. "GO!"

Cody glanced down at the height of the falls and began to feel nauseous.

"Cody, you look sick." Sierra said. "Don't worry! I'll carry you across gently!" She promptly lifted him up and held him close to her, like a baby, before starting to jog across the tightrope.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **"Here's something Cody doesn't know. I became an ordained minister on the internet! I can marry Cody for real. Oh yep. I'll recite the ceremony super fast and all he has to say is: _I do!_" She sighed.

* * *

"___Do you Cody take me Sierra to be your lawfully wedded wife_ ?" Sierra chattered, now running with Cody across the tightrope.

"Pardon?" Cody asked, still sounding queasy.

"For a wedding present, I was thinking about buying you a convertible. Do like that idea?" she asked.

"Sure. But you know that this wedding thing is just for the game, right?" Cody asked.

"Is there any other way you'd like to phrase that? _Two words?_" Sierra persisted. "Starts with 'I', hmm?"

* * *

Meanwhile Owen and Izzy were having an animated conversation.

"So how is it that you are able to carry me across here anyway?" he asked.

"Owen, that's classified information. If I told you that, Explosivo would have to kill you!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Okay..." Owen said. "So what have you been doing since you left the game earlier?" he asked.

"Oh I went on a pretty wild adventure with some friends. Yep! I met a lot of new people and met an evil maniac out to take over the universe! Yep! Now me and some other people have to learn how to take him out, even though that's going to be really hard to do..." Izzy said.

"Sure..." Owen said, believing it to be just another one of her wild tales.

* * *

Heather and Alejandro were arguing.

"I want Gwen gone next. Izzy isn't all that great a threat, despite being crazy and the same goes for Sierra!" Heather exclaimed. "Plus she _really _annoys me."

"Psh. She can wait. She does not get my vote. _We_ vote for Owen!" Alejandro insisted.

"But I want her gone! Gone, gone, gone!" Heather seemed to forget that they were on a tightrope and began to stomp.

"Be- c-careful! AAH!" Alejandro and Heather screamed in fright as the two toppled over the falls.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **He laughed. "_Of course_ I fell _on purpose!_ I am a gifted balancer. But it would be unwise to appear too strong right now, with the teams just dissolved. I don't _require _immunity, not with my alliances with Heather, Owen and Duncan! So I lay in wait like a _crocodillo_. A devilishly handsome crocodillo!"

* * *

"Business or pleasure?" Customs Officer Chef asked, as Sierra and Cody approached him.

"Super-duper married _pleasure!_" Sierra squealed.

"Okay then. A few questions first. What is Canada's capital?" he asked.

"That's easy! Ottawa!" Cody answered.

"I think what Chef meant to say was... uh... say yes! Yep! I two words!" Sierra exclaimed.

"What?" Cody raised an eyebrow.

"What leaf is on Canada's flag?" Chef asked.

"The maple-"

"Don't you want to ask Cody whether he _loves_ the Canadian flag?" Sierra asked.

"Well, of course, I-" Cody started.

"Agh! Do, do, DO!" Sierra shouted.

"Failure to declare crazy status means you're deported. Go back!" Chef said, pointing at the tightrope.

* * *

When going back, Sierra bumped into Izzy.

"You should probably get out of the way, Sierra." Izzy said, holding Owen a little tighter.

"But I'm carrying precious cargo!" Sierra exclaimed.

Izzy immediately frowned. "Are you saying I'm not precious? Because Izzy is precious!"

"Izzy, you should probably calm down. I mean, we're on a tightrope, remember?" Owen said.

Sierra and Izzy growled at each other and tried to shove past each other. This however did not work and sent both couples plummeting into the falls below.

* * *

"Duncan, I think you should forget about this alliance with Alejandro. He's evil!" Gwen exclaimed.

"And you think I don't know that because? Trust me, Gwen. I got this." Duncan said as they reached the other side and correctly answered all of Customs Officer Chef's questions.

Chris came up and began clapping.

"Congrats, guys! You'll be travelling together in First Class! And you've both on Invincibility. Gives you plenty of time to convince Duncan to get out of that alliance, hun Gwen?"

"Good!" Gwen said, once she had put Duncan down and dusted herself off.

"_Help us!_" Sierra yelled from below.

When Duncan and Gwen glanced over the platform, they saw Sierra, Cody, Izzy, Heather and Alejandro piled on top of Owen. Izzy was using her hands to try and propel them away from the sharks that were chasing them.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **"I've been waiting two seasons for this day! And now it's ruined! I have something old, _**Chris, **_something new, my wedding dress and something borrowed, Cody's toothbrush." She held it up. "And now I've got something blue- ME! Why couldn't he just say it? _WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?_"

* * *

Outside the Confessional Lavatory, Alejandro leaned in a corner, watching Cody who was desperate to go.

"Listening to The Falls all day, it really makes you have to go!" Cody exclaimed, jumping up and down, trying to hold it in.

Sierra came out just then.

"Oh, sorry. Do you desperately have to go?" Sierra asked.

"Uh, yeah. I do." Cody said.

Sierra froze.

"OH MY GOSH! YOU JUST SAID IT! YOU SAID I DO!" Sierra squealed. "We're _married_ now!" She said, hugging him tightly and kissing him.

"Hold up! That wasn't a real wedding, was it?" Cody asked, struggling to get away from her.

Alejandro watched this and then decided what to do.

"May I offer my congratulations to _the new couple?_" He said. "As the only witness, I must make it official!"

"Oh my gosh! I almost forgot about the witness part!" Sierra exclaimed.

"Yes, you did. But I will help you. And there's just one thing I need from you!" Alejandro said, putting a hand on Sierra's shoulder and smirking.

* * *

At the Elimination Ceremony Chris was going over the votes.

"Duncan and Gwen have immunity, so everyone else is fair game. What's it going to be?" He asked.

"Hmm... Interesting. _Really?_ Huh. Who would've thought?" He said.

"JUST READ THEM ALREADY!" Heather shouted, startling him.

"Okay, okay. Sheesh! Hold onto your halter top!" Chris said.

"Two votes for Heather..." He read.

"What? Heather turned to glare at everyone else.

"Two votes for Sierra..." Her read.

"I'm sorry. My name is Sierra-Cody now. It's hyphenated." Sierra insisted, holding Cody close to her. Chris ignored her.

"And four votes for..." Chris paused for dramatic effect.

"Owen!" he exclaimed.

"What?" He was puzzled.

Alejandro smiled evilly. "_Finally one of my biggest annoyances is gone!_" he thought.

Izzy bolted up as Chris handed him the parachute and leapt at Owen, kissing him full on the lips.

"I'm gonna miss you, Big O!" She said, hugging him tightly.

Sappy music began to play.

"Seriously, where _does _that music come from?" Gwen asked.

Chef walked into the room, holding a radio.

"Oh." Gwen glanced at it.

"Well, it's time to go, I suppose..." Owen strapped on his parachute as Izzy went back to her seat.

Alejandro hid behind the statue at the door and tried shoving Owen out as had became stuck in the door, but it backfired on him, as Owen let loose a fart which sank him to his knees, choking and eyes watering.

* * *

**(1)** Help me please! I'm stuck!

* * *

Woah, this chapter was _long! _I'm pretty pleased with it, well except for the song anyway. I wasn't too fond of that part. I may rewrite it. Who knows?

Anyway, this chapter officially breaks the 100,000 word mark for this story. I've never done that before... YAY!

Read and Review!


	22. Chinese Fake Out

Sorry for the late update everyone! School is keeping me busy, plus I've been helping out with Queen of the Elementals 09's new Glee story "The Next New Directions!" It's in my faves list and I'd check it out if I were you!

**Disclaimer:** See chapter 1.

* * *

Izzy was happily reading her Elemental Book, humming.

"_IZZY!_" Aideen shouted.

Izzy fell off the bench, startled. She got back up, shook herself and sat down again.

"_What?_" Izzy asked.

"_Don't tell me what. You should well know what I'm talking about..._" Aideen snapped.

Izzy paused for a moment. "_What? The story I told Owen? Nobody would actually believe that coming from me! They all think I'm psycho, remember?_"

Aideen was silent for a moment. "_Wow. What you said there actually made sense... But please, don't do that again!_" Aideen closed off the Link.

When Izzy retrieved her book and glanced up at everyone, they were all looking at her weirdly.

"What? Just talking to the voices in my head!" Izzy grinned.

Heather and Alejandro who were sitting right beside her inched away slowly giving her creeped out looks.

"Weirdo!" Heather said.

"Thanks!" Izzy grinned.

They soon turned their attention to Cody, who was complaining about the predicament he found himself in now from the previous episode.

"She wants to throw a reception for us when we get back home! She wants to get one of those cupcake cakes and spend the whole day smashing icing into each other's faces!" He complained.

"They say it's always best for a husband to _indulge_ his wife!" Alejandro said. "_Can't hurt for a little on the side mischief, right?_" He thought.

Heather raised an eyebrow. "Except they're not married!" she pointed out.

"But they are! I saw it myself!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"There is no marriage certificate, no rings, no paparazzi photos..." Heather said.

"Hey! She's right! She's absolutely right! Thank goodness!" Cody exclaimed.

"Seriously. You are about as married to Sierra as Alejandro and I are!" Heather said.

"Mi Ángel, I know you crave Alejandro like a big chicken craves guacamole sauce, but marriage? Aren't you... rushing things?" Alejandro asked.

"Ew, ew, ew, ick, ick, ick!" Heather turned away from him in disgust.

"Your mouth says ick, but your eyes say something else." Alejandro said.

"They say, **barf!**" Heather exclaimed.

"_Don't deny it Heather, you know it's true!_" Gwen said.

"_It is not. Don't tell me what I feel, Weird Goth Girl!_" Heather snapped.

"_If that is what you say..._" Gwen smirked before cutting off the Link.

"I know they're married only in Sierra's fantasy, but she needs me to say I witnessed it and therefore she stays on **our side.**" Alejandro whispered to Heather.

"There is no **'our side'!**" She exclaimed.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"If I can get Sierra off this show, I win Cody's loyalty and leave Alejandro with only Duncan."

* * *

Izzy and Sierra were sitting together on the other side of the plane.

"What do you think of the name Adira?" Sierra asked. "Or Natasha or Gianna? Those would make great girl names!" Sierra giggled.

"Those are all great names, but don't you think you're taking this a little..." Izzy held up her thumb and pointer finger. "...too far?"

"Nope! He and I are married after all! We're going to have a great life together!" Sierra squealed.

Izzy blinked and chuckled nervously.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy: **"Sierra's my friend and all, has been for a few months now, but there are times when she creeps even ME out!" She went wide-eyed.

* * *

Gwen and Duncan were in First Class. Duncan was playing a video game while Gwen was picking at a slice of cake at the bar.

"_Bridgette, how are you doing?_" she asked.

"_Getting along..._" Bridgette replied.

"_Vesta messaged me earlier. She told me that Travis got someone to go to your mum's house to collect your passport and bring it over. They already live nearby and were headed your way apparently..._" Gwen said.

"_Travis did say that someone was bringing it. They haven't gotten here yet... And my mom! I am all she has! I really don't know how this will affect her!_" Bridgette said worriedly.

"_Dear old Bridgette. Always thinking of someone else before herself. If she's as strong as you are, then she'll be fine!_" Gwen reassured her.

"_Thanks Gwen. By the way have you approached Duncan about the alliance you say he's in with Alejandro?_"

"_No. I'm going to soon though._"

"_Good luck with that..._" Bridgette closed off the Link.

Gwen finished her slice of cake and put the things she was using aside.

She got up and went over to Duncan who was extremely engrossed in his video game, which reminded Gwen of the Grand Theft Auto games that her brother played.

"Duncan?"

"Can't talk now. Stealing this car and running over a police officer!" Duncan was slamming buttons hard on his game control.

"We need to talk. **Now.**"

Duncan was too engrossed in the game to hear her.

Without a word, Gwen went over to the plug and pulled it out.

"Hey! I almost had a high score!" Duncan threw the controller at the TV, which luckily did not break.

"Look. I want to talk to you about Alejandro..." Gwen started.

"Look Gwen. I got this. Don't worry!" Duncan held up his hands.

"No. I _**don't**_ think you got this. He's beyond evil. I don't think your alliance with him is a good idea. If you hang around him, I have the feeling that something really bad is going to happen..."

Duncan held her hands. "_Trust me_ on this babe. I know he's a manipulative _***censored* **_but he's not the only one with tricks up his sleeve!"

"I still can't shake that feeling..." Gwen said, shaking her head.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Gwen: **"Seriously, I can't help the feeling that Alejandro is going to sink to a new low today!"

**Alejandro:** "Now that I'm this far in the game, I need to take things to a new high!" He smirked.

**Izzy: **She sniffed the air. "It smells like evil and worry in here! Oh and it also smells an awful lot like-"

* * *

"Ni hao everyone! Welcome to China!"

Everyone stood next to one another, looking around at their new destination as Chris spoke.

"A vast country rich in history, culture, innovation and delicious sauces!" he continued.

"Ooh! Sweet and Sour..." Izzy said dreamily.

"Our first challenge is torn from the pages of her rich history. In eight million B.C., King Dim Sum led a battalion of donkey warriors down this very Great Wall." Chris gestured to the Great Wall of China, which was right behind him.

"We've provided a selection of vehicles to race to our mystery destination. They're first come, first serve. It's the Chinese way."

"_I'm sure it is..._" The three Keepers thought in unison sarcastically.

"Now, ready, set..."

The contestants got ready to run.

Chris' cell phone rang- to the tune of the show's theme song.

"I'd better get this. McLean here! Um, I'm trying to do a show here..."

"Do we go or what?" Heather asked impatiently.

"Yep." Chris said.

"Yep as in, 'Yep, we go?'" Alejandro asked.

"Can we do this later?" Chris continued talking.

"So we go now?" Duncan asked.

"Yeah, sure. Fine." Chris waved them off.

The contestants dashed off.

"HEY! WHO SAID YOU COULD GO?" Chris yelled after them.

"THERE'S A FEW THINGS I WAS GOING TO WARN YOU ABOUT!"

"But... forget it!" Chris chuckled.

* * *

"Whoo! This is fun!" Izzy said.

As the contestants ran up to the vehicles available- a skateboard, a bicycle, a donkey, a pogo stick, roller skates, a tricycle and a unicycle, Izzy was in the lead.

"Says you!" Heather exclaimed, catching up to her as they reached them.

"The unicycle is MINE!" Izzy roared, knocking over Heather in the process of trying to get to them.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy: **"Uh-huh. Yeah. So I used to be a part of the circus and part of my act was riding a unicycle across a tightrope while balancing a lion on my head! I think the lion was much more scared than I was! Whee!"

* * *

"What the hell? I wasn't even going for those!" Heather said, picking up the roller skates.

"Whoops! **SORRY!**" Izzy yelled, before riding off on the unicycle.

Gwen managed to get to the tricycle and joined them.

"I'm not about to give up so easily!" she exclaimed.

Behind them, Duncan and Alejandro had just reached the bicycle and the skateboard.

"Duncan, you do know I think of you as my... _bromigo _right?" Alejandro said.

"Yeah, so? We gonna wrestle over this or what?" Duncan asked, gesturing to the bicycle.

"If you want it, it's yours. I will unfortunately have to ride this skateboard..."

Duncan jumped onto the bike and sped off. "Later!"

After Duncan had been gone for a bit, Alejandro took up the skateboard and twirled it in mid-air before going off on it.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"A small price to pay for Duncan's loyalty. What I forgot to mention is that I won a gold medal at the South American Skate Olympics."

* * *

Sierra had grabbed both the donkey and the pogo stick.

"Surely you don't intend to take them both, do you?" Cody asked.

"Of course not, the donkey is for you, for being my sugar-faced, honey pie!" Sierra said, a creepy smile on her face.

Creepy music played as she talked.

The two of them looked around. "Where did that music come from?" Cody asked, looking around.

Sierra shrugged.

"Anyway, let's hop to it!" Cody exclaimed, grabbing the reins from Sierra and with an almighty leap, landed perfectly atop the donkey. "Giddy-up, donkey!"

* * *

"Nice speed there, buddy!" Duncan said.

"Gracias! I hope gravity is also your buddy on this incline!" Alejandro replied.

The two were neck and neck.

"Thanks! Hope a wheel doesn't lock up and land you on your face!" Duncan taunted, going ahead.

"_He doesn't know who he's messing with._" Alejandro thought, catching up quickly, outstripping him and disappearing.

"Woah! How did he manage to go so fast on a- YIII!" Duncan was sent flying by the force of an explosion.

"Wanna know what else the Chinese invented? EXPLOSIVES!" Chris yelled through his megaphone from the helicopter above.

* * *

Cody, riding the donkey he now called Ace watched the explosion from a distance.

"It's okay, Ace. Now can you give me a little more gas?" he asked.

Ace farted.

"That wasn't what he meant..." Sierra came up beside them on her pogo stick. "Now giddy up ya bad donkey!"

Cody sighed. "This is going to hurt me more than it's going to hurt you. Sierra, I like you. Okay? But there are some people you like, like and then there are some people you like, like... more than like... Uh, you feel me?"

Silence, except for Ace's breathing and the sounds of Sierra's pogo stick.

"You like me? You really like _**ME?**_" Sierra hopped around him.

"AS A FRIEND!"

Cody leaned over to whisper into Ace's ear.

"She could go on like this all day, Ace. So could we get a move on?" He asked, kicking Ace in the sides.

Ace got a wild look in his eye and bolted up.

With an almighty kick behind him, which sent Sierra over the wall, Ace sped off.

As Cody clung on tightly he asked Ace: "Is this how you break up with people in the donkey world?"

* * *

Meanwhile, Heather, Gwen and Izzy were alongside each other.

Izzy, however decided that riding her unicycle in circles around the other two was much more fun than going straight, which was annoying them.

"Izzy, would you please **QUIT THAT?**" As Heather said it, one of the wheels of her roller skates caught in one of the stones, sending her sprawling.

"Owww..." Heather wailed, covering her newly bleeding nose.

"Look what you did, Izzy! I probably broke my nose now! OUCH!" Heather was clutching her nose.

"Oh, stop being such a baby!" Izzy said, drawing a bandage out of her skirt and offered it to her.

"I'm not putting that on my nose! It came out of your skirt! _**Your skirt!**_" Heather said in disgust, pulling a handkerchief out of her pocket and dabbing her nose with it.

"So?" Izzy asked, pulling a banana out of her skirt and beginning to peel it.

"Ugh! That is disgusting!" Gwen said, shuddering.

"_Now _you see it?" Heather asked.

"Anyway, now that my snack is finished..." Izzy threw the banana peel aside and sped off.

"_How does one manage to work up so much speed on a UNICYCLE?_" Gwen and Heather thought.

* * *

Alejandro was skateboarding coolly along, more than confident that he was well ahead of Duncan.

"_Stupid little delinquent. Did he really think that he could-?_"

Alejandro went wide-eyed as Duncan passed him.

"Thought you lost me, eh buddy?" Duncan taunted.

"_Where the hell did he come from?_"

Alejandro put on some more speed and caught up to him.

"Glad you're okay, _pal..._"

"Hey! Your shoelace is untied!" Duncan called out.

Alejandro rolled his eyes.

"They're boots! Nice try!" he retorted.

"Who needs to try?" Duncan asked.

"Not me!" Alejandro exclaimed.

The two of them soon saw Gwen and Heather ahead.

"I will pass them first!" Alejandro said.

"No you won't!" Duncan too sped up.

Unfortunately for him, he did not see the banana peel that Izzy had left behind.

He rode right on top of it and it sent him skidding uncontrollably into a wall.

"DUNCAN!" Gwen cried out. She slowed down to help him.

"AHAHAHAHA!" Alejandro pointed and laughed as he passed them.

Gwen glared.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Gwen: **"Alejandro has no soul. He's going _**down.**_"

* * *

Ahead, Heather was humming happily to herself.

"_Gwen's way behind me, Izzy is nowhere to be seen, Alejandro isn't here..._"

Heather glanced around.

"_Oh great. He IS here!_"

"Hola chica! Wait- what happened to your nose?" Alejandro pointed at her nose which still looked red and swollen.

"What's it to you?" Heather snapped.

"Nada. Nothing. I was merely curious as to what could have caused such a horrendous injury!" He shrugged.

"Horrendous injury? I'll show you horrendous injury!" Heather growled, skating over to him.

Alejandro quickly dodged out of her way.

"Still a lively chica I see!" Alejandro smirked at her as Spanish music played in the background.

"Where does that music come from?" Heather and Alejandro looked around.

* * *

_In a small Chinese hut, Chris had monitors set up so he could see the various contestants on the Great Wall. He also twirled a remote control in his hand and pressed a button on it._

_The same Spanish music from before played in the room._

_He laughed._

* * *

In another Chinese hut, an old, petite Chinese woman sat drinking tea at her table. She poured another cup from the pot there and was just about to drink it when-

"AIEYIYIYIYAAAAAAAA!" Sierra came crashing through the roof and landed in the seat across from her.

"Oh, hi there..." Sierra waved timidly at the woman.

"You looked troubled young one. Would you like to have some tea with me and talk?" the woman asked.

Sierra blinked and then began to launch into a litany of her 'relationship problems' with Cody.

"But he _**has **_to love me back! He _**has**_ to!" Sierra wailed as the old woman poured her some tea.

The old woman paused for a moment to think.

"_What would be best cure for love-sick girl's problems? Oh, wait!_"

The old woman went to a nearby cupboard and began rummaging.

"Aha!" She pulled out a brown paper bag with a Chinese symbol on it and handed it to Sierra.

"You need Love Tea. More he drinks, more _he love..._" She said. "Only 300 Yuan! Cheap, good price!"

"I'LL TAKE IT!" She exclaimed happily.

Sierra handed her a whole roll of Yuan and grinned as she held the paper bag containing the Love Tea.

* * *

Izzy was riding rather erratically on her unicycle on the _edges _of the Great Wall.

"WAHOO! THIS IS FUN!" She screamed, hair whipping around behind her.

She somehow managed to pull off a mid-air flip and still remain on the unicycle when she landed on the main part of the Wall.

Unfortunately however, she landed on another explosive which sent her catapulting in spirals of smoke screaming until she landed- across the finish line.

Izzy looked up at the checkered banner, realized where she was and began cheering. She was covered in soot and her hair was a mess, but she had made it.

"WOO HOO! IZZY MADE IT!"

* * *

"See what I mean about him being evil?" Gwen asked while tending to him.

"Some alliance 'buddy' he is..." Duncan muttered.

"Ready to move on?" She asked.

"Sure!" Duncan grinned. "Let's go kick Alejandro's butt!" He cheered.

"That's what I wanted to hear." Gwen smiled.

"So, where did you get that necklace, anyway? I never saw you wear it before this season..." Duncan asked, nodding towards the Silver Star.

"Um, that's because I only got it after this season started..." Gwen said.

"Where?" Duncan asked.

"Err..."

Luckily (or unluckily as you may see it!) for Gwen, she was saved from answering that question by a loud roar.

"What was that?" She asked, unnerved.

"I don't know... uh oh..." Duncan froze.

"Uh oh **what?**" Gwen asked.

Soon she sensed movement behind her and when she turned to look, she was face to face with a large, Chinese dragon robot that looked to be _at least_ twenty feet tall and about half as wide, with smoke coming out of its nostrils.

"Oh. **RIDE FOR YOUR LIFE!**" Gwen hopped onto her tricycle.

"You don't have to tell **me** twice!" Duncan got onto the bicycle and the two of them pedaled as fast as they could.

"**WHERE DID THIS DRAGON EVEN COME FROM?**" They yelled.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chris: **He twirled what looked like a game controller in his hand and laughed. "This is fun!"

* * *

"This is **NOT** fun!" Duncan said.

"Gee. Ya think?" Gwen snapped.

"_Dragons aren't even supposed to be real!_" Gwen thought.

"_Neither is magic, right?_" Vesta asked.

"_Good point._" Gwen responded.

Soon however, the dragon decided it had enough of chasing them and decided to take another tactic.

It flew over both of their heads and landed in front of them, smoke billowing out of its nostrils.

Duncan went wide-eyed. "Oh _sh-_"

"COME ON!" Gwen yelled, grabbing his arm and yanking him out of the way just barely enough to save him from becoming Roasted Delinquent.

They were now on the side of the Wall trying to ride, balance and avoid deadly flames all at the same time, which as you might have guessed wasn't exactly going well...

The last straw for Gwen came when the dragon swung its tail and knocked them both over the Wall, sending their vehicles plummeting to the ground far, _far_ below.

Duncan held onto a tree branch jutting out of the wall and screamed like a little girl which Gwen raised an eyebrow at, holding onto another branch a few meters below.

Duncan narrowed his eyes. "We shall never speak of this again, got it?"

The dragon just then decided to send some more flame down at them.

"I've had enough of this _***censored***_ dragon!" Gwen roared.

She gathered all her strength and hoisted herself over the Wall.

The dragon looked at her skeptically, head leaning on a side.

"I think you'll find that I'm more than a match for you!" She exclaimed.

The dragon sent more flames at her.

"You do NOT want to make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry!" Gwen got into a fighting stance.

"She's right, you know!" Duncan's voice called up.

The dragon breathed even more fire than before.

"Oh well. I did warn you!" Gwen said before unleashing a barrage of punches and kicks all over the robot, which when over made it go running and screaming away.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chris: **"My robot! My beautiful, beautiful authentic Chinese robot!" When he held up the controller to the camera there was a sticker on it which said _'Made in Japan'_ however...

* * *

Duncan was wide-eyed in shock as Gwen hauled him up.

"Wow. I had no idea you had such, such, wow..." Duncan had a love struck expression on his face.

Gwen rolled her eyes. "Well, it looks like our vehicles are done for..." She sighed.

"You're right... Now what?" he asked.

"Now we walk, I suppose..."

* * *

Alejandro and Heather were racing neck and neck, hurling insults at one another.

"Self-absorbed _***censored*!**_" Heather yelled.

"Arrogant _***censored***_!" Alejandro yelled back.

Heather gasped. "Like you're one to talk, you creep!"

"Takes one to know one!"

"And that's exactly why you know that!"

The two growled at each other in anger.

"Give it up! You know I'm going to win!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"In your dreams maybe! I'm winning this!" Heather snapped.

When they made a turn, they saw the finish line ahead of them and the insults grew even more ferocious.

The two zoomed past the line in a blur and came to a sudden halt, very nearly bumping into the giant gong that stood there.

"Well hermosa, I think I beat you!" Alejandro said.

"I don't think so!" Heather folded her arms.

They soon heard the sounds of heavy breathing and when they looked behind them, a soot-covered, tattered-clothing-wearing Chris came up the wall.

"Woah, what happened to him?" Heather asked, thumbing Chris over her shoulder.

* * *

_Chris was shown walking just below the Great Wall, still ranting to himself about the damaged dragon. Above, on the Great Wall itself, the dragon, who was still running away from Gwen's fury and not looking where it was going, tumbled right over the wall._

_Chris barely had time to look up before the dragon exploded right above him, leaving him charred and his clothes tattered._

* * *

"Never you mind that..." Chris said.

"May we check the photo finish for our race then?" Alejandro asked.

"What show do you think you're on?" Chris asked. "There's no prize for finishing first!"

"WHAT?" Alejandro and Heather shouted in unison.

"If you had waited for me to explain the rules, I would have said whoever makes it across the line before the gong is sounded gets to join me for a _very_ special lunch. A.K.A. the next part of the challenge!"

Heather and Alejandro huffed and turned away from each other.

"I still won!" Heather said.

"I don't think so!" Alejandro said.

"Actually, I WON!"

The two turned around to see Izzy leaning against the wall, casually flipping through a Chinese magazine with several suspiciously bulging bags beside her.

"Do I even WANT to know how?" Heather asked exasperatedly.

"Nope!" Izzy said cheerfully.

* * *

Meanwhile, Cody was in the far distance on Ace.

"Come on Ace, you can do it! Make it to the finish line before Sierra shows up!" Cody encouraged.

"Did somebody say my name?"

When Cody looked around, he saw Sierra bouncing up and down on her pogo stick, _on the other side_ of The Wall.

"_Speak of The Devil..._" Cody grumbled.

Sierra did one mighty leap and landed over the wall, right beside him.

"What's up, Codykins?"

"You are..." Cody watched her bounce up and down, inwardly sighing at his inability to shrug her off permanently.

Sierra giggled. "Good one!"

"_I wasn't even intending to make a joke!_" Cody thought.

He could now see the finish line clearly and began to urge Ace on.

"Come on buddy! COME ON!" Cody chanted.

The donkey sped up so fast that it left a trail of smoke behind it, leaving Sierra sputtering and choking.

"WOAH! SLOW DOWN ACE! SLO- AAAHHH!"

Ace decided to stop suddenly and Cody was thrown off, going straight over the gong, doing a back flip ... and landing in Izzy's shopping.

"MY EXPLOSIVES!" Izzy snatched the bags from beneath him.

"EXPLOSIVES?" the others exclaimed.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy: **She shrugged. "What? We all know that the Chinese make the most awesome entertaining exploding stuff!"

* * *

"You're lucky you didn't set them off!" Izzy exclaimed as the others scampered away.

"COMING THROUGH!" Sierra yelled, bouncing madly on her pogo stick.

The contestants screamed and scattered to get out of the way.

"Yay! I made it!" Sierra cheered.

"NO! SHE MADE IT!" Cody tore at his hair.

"So only two contestants are missing! Where are Duncan and Gwen?" Chris asked.

"I wonder if my dragon finished them off!" Chris gloated.

"WHAT DRAGON?" The others shouted.

"The dragon that tried to KILL US!"

Duncan and Gwen were without their vehicles, looking tired, but VERY pissed off, but nevertheless managed to make it across the line in time, for as soon as Chris saw them coming, he had taken up the stick needed to ring the gong.

"Oh drat!" He exclaimed in disappointment.

* * *

"_Drat!_" Courtney muttered under her breath. She was hoping that _those two _would lose.

Lindsay raised an eyebrow at her across the room. She turned away.

"_Jeez, can she hear my thoughts?_" Courtney thought.

On screen, the contestants were having the eating challenge explained to them.

"Eating contest?" Heather raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you already do this in the first season? What's the matter, run out of originality?"

"This isn't just any eating contest..." Chris smirked evilly.

"Uh oh, the evil smile is back..." Many people commented worriedly.

"You ARE aware that some of have allergies, right?" Gwen asked.

"Sure..." Chris said, in a tone that made them think otherwise.

Chef who was watching this, rolled his eyes. "I knew you wouldn't think of anything like that, pretty boy so I did up the allergy list myself!"

"Chef, I never knew you cared about the contestants!" Chris exclaimed in shock.

Chef face-palmed. "I don't you moron! But what do you think the cost of the lawsuits is going to do to my salary, huh?" he said, waving the list in Chris' face.

"_Seriously, why did that blonde idiot have to humiliate me in front of the others so fast?_" Courtney pondered.

She decided that she no longer wanted to watch, but before she left, an evil smirk formed on her face.

"_If I'm not going to be in the contest anymore, you aren't going to be in it for much longer either, __**Gwen...**_" Courtney thought with pure malice dripping from said thoughts.

She got up and went outside, but before she left completely, she turned back, held her hand towards the television and muttered a spell under her breath.

Lindsay, back inside the room heard Courtney's mumbling. It wasn't clear to her what the words actually were, but she didn't like the sound of them.

"I'll be right back guys!" She kissed Tyler and waved to the others before going off, following Courtney.

As soon as she stepped out of the room, she turned invisible.

After following Courtney for a bit, she noticed that the marks on Courtney's skin that she and Izzy had seen before had gotten slightly darker.

She was somewhat alarmed at this, but went back to the room with the others and continued watching the episode, and trying to act as if nothing was wrong.

"_What's the matter, Lindsay?_" Bridgette asked.

"_I dunno. I just get this really bad vibe from Courtney now and I don't like it at all!_" Lindsay said.

"_Really?_" Bridgette sounded surprised.

"_Even more than usual!_" Lindsay exclaimed.

"_Worse than last time?_"

"_Not even close!_" Lindsay said, sending an image of Courtney.

"_Wait, what are those marks on her skin?_" Bridgette asked.

"_I don't know! Izzy and I only saw them after we got back from training!_" Lindsay replied.

"_And nobody else has commented on them...?_" Bridgette was puzzled.

"_It's like they can't even see them and they're right there!_" Lindsay said.

"_Strange... Something about this isn't right..._" Bridgette said.

* * *

"HOLY CRAP!" Courtney exclaimed.

She had just walked into her room and looked into the mirror.

The marks from her fairy form, although faint, were still there.

"_What the hell? Why are they still there?_" Courtney thought.

Her cell phone which was nearby began to ring.

She glared at it for a moment as if it personally were responsible for the marks remaining on her skin.

"**What?**" She snapped.

"_Well then, can't I call in to check on the Hex Keeper?_" Radcliffe's voice came through, as clear as a bell.

"You! But how did yo-" Courtney was cut off by Radcliffe talking again.

"_Courtney, Courtney, Courtney. You have a lot to learn about magic. I can find out quite a lot of things with it, you know..._"

"Never mind that! Did you know that the marks from my fairy form are still on my skin _**even when I'm not transformed?**_"

"_Has anyone pointed this out as yet?"_

"No, but I have seen Lindsay looking at me funny." Courtney muttered.

"_Hmmm... Don't worry about that one bit! I shall send you something for that as soon as I can obtain it._"

"Can't be soon enough!" Courtney grumbled.

* * *

In the eating contest so far Cody and Heather had been eliminated after not finishing the dishes of donkey meat and live meal worms respectively.

The next dishes were being presented to the remaining contestants- Gwen, Izzy, Alejandro, Sierra and Duncan.

"What are these things?" Alejandro looked even more squeamish than he had been before. He might have been pretty strong physically, devilishly handsome, charming and intelligent, but the one thing he lacked was a strong stomach.

"_Why did there have to be an eating contest?_" He thought worriedly.

Heather noted the look on his face and smirked.

"_He's not going to last long, now is he?_" She thought with a smile.

"Oh, just a few stewed scorpions is all..." Chris shrugged.

"Aren't these supposed to be **poisonous?**" Sierra eyed one, which she was holding with her chopsticks skeptically.

"I took out any of the poisonous parts. Chris would have rather let them stay on, but I ain't having no deaths on my watch!" Chef exclaimed.

"_Still not very reassuring..._" Gwen thought.

_**After the next verse of the song had been completed, Alejandro dropped out as he vomited before he could even put one piece to his mouth.**_

Chef placed the next dish in front of the remaining four contestants.

_**The song continued, with Gwen and Duncan singing particularly off-key.**_

"Starfish on a skewer! Local delicacy!" Chris grinned.

Gwen and Duncan eyed it wearily and at the same time that Gwen decided she wasn't eating it, Duncan threw up.

"Bye bye you two! Loser bench!" Chris said.

Gwen threw the skewer at him, which he narrowly managed to dodge.

"HEY!" He cried out indignantly.

Gwen merely laughed a bitter sort of laugh.

At this point, only Izzy and Sierra were left in the challenge.

"The two craziest people on this show. Why am I not surprised?" Chris shrugged as Chef served the last dish which was so nasty-looking that it was actually unidentifiable.

"What's IN that?" Heather asked.

* * *

_Chef was in the restaurant's kitchen, stirring a large cauldron and browsing through a Chinese recipe book._

"_Hmmm... I've already got the alligator eyeballs, squid tentacles, spoilt milk, monosodium glutamate, a boiled picture of Rebecca Black, shredded Twilight books... What else do I need?" Chef thought out loud._

"_Oh right!" He snapped his fingers._

_He reached into a nearby cupboard._

"_Lots and lots of salt of course!" He said, taking the cover off the salt container and emptying out the lot into the cauldron and stirring it in humming 'Somebody's In The Kitchen' happily._

* * *

"Do you REALLY want to know the answer to that question?" Chef raised an eyebrow at her.

"I guess not..." Heather shuddered.

_**The song continued. Sierra gulping down her Love-Me Tea and eating at the same time and Izzy eating gingerly.**_

"AAH! I can taste the Rebecca Black in this thing! Disgusting!" Izzy threw the dish at Chris, which splattered all over him.

"YAY! I won! Cody's SO in First Class with me!" Sierra squealed.

Cody sunk down in his seat and sighed.

* * *

Alejandro was down in the cargo hold once again.

"_How do I manipulate this elimination now? Three of the Keepers are together and who's to say that they won't use that to form an alliance to their advantage? Sierra and Cody are immune now and Duncan is weary of me!_" He thought.

"_Perhaps I ought to speak with Radcliffe on this issue..._"

He flicked his hand and an orb of darkness appeared.

It was a few moments before Radcliffe's voice came clearly through it.

"What is the matter this time?" Radcliffe asked.

Alejandro explained the situation to him.

"Well then, your Uncle Julio taught you a few tricks, did he not?" Radcliffe asked.

"Yes he did. But how can I be sure that hypnotism will work on magical beings as strong as the Keepers are?" Alejandro asked.

"It doesn't have to be. You can just... Confuse them a little. Get the idea?" Radcliffe asked with a slight chuckle.

Alejandro chuckled as well, a smirk forming on his face.

"And make sure it looks like you also fell into it, lest they grow suspicious of you." Radcliffe said.

"Got it." Alejandro made the orb disappear.

* * *

The contestants were now in the voting room waiting to see who would be eliminated.

Cody was being hugged tightly by Sierra and was trying to get away.

Gwen was talking to Duncan who was looking extremely pissed off about something.

Izzy was reading another one of the Chinese magazines she had bought.

Heather was sitting one on end of the bench looking bored.

Alejandro was on the other end smirking evilly. Oh how he looked forward to seeing everyone's reactions to who they voted for!

Chris finally came into the room holding all the passports.

"Wow. Today's elimination is actually quite a shocker!" Chris exclaimed, looking genuinely surprised.

The contestants looked at one another uneasily.

"Sierra had Immunity and she picked Cody to travel in First Class with her so they're still in the game!" Chris said, throwing them their bags of peanuts.

"Izzy, you're in too!" Izzy caught he bag and began munching.

"Duncan and Alejandro, you are _**also**_ safe!" Chris threw the bags at them.

Duncan actually began to look worried.

"WHAT?" Gwen and Heather looked at each other incredulously.

"Who voted for me?" Gwen asked.

"**WHO VOTED FOR ME?**" Heather shouted.

"Gwen and Heather. Heather and Gwen. Let's see which of you two will be going home." Chris said.

"Heather. Nobody likes you! Gwen. You destroyed my Chinese dragon robot. _Not cool._ And which is probably why you're going home now." Chris tossed the last bag of peanuts to Heather.

"What?" Gwen barely had time to react before she was thrown a parachute by Chris and shoved out the plane.

"What? How? I didn't vote for her!" Cody exclaimed.

"Neither did I!" Duncan exclaimed.

"Or me!" Izzy exclaimed.

"I actually _**didn't**_ this time!" Heather exclaimed.

"Really?" Chris raised an eyebrow.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra:** She looked dazed as she stamped in her vote.

**Cody: **He groaned, looking confused as he stamped in his vote.

**Duncan: **He looked sleepy as he stamped in his vote and then flopped to the floor of the Confessional.

**Izzy: **Her eyes were glazed over as she stamped in her vote.

**Heather: **She looked confused at first but then became sharp again. She was about to stamp one passport, but the glazed look came into her eye and she stamped another passport instead.

**Gwen: **She looked dazed as she dropped the stamp on a random passport.

**Alejandro: **He shook his head as if to clear it, but looked as if he might have had a headache and stamped his passport, holding his stomach and groaning as he left the Confessional.

* * *

Radcliffe's library was a large room with several large, black, ornately carved bookshelves. They were all filled with books of several types, the titles of which were in several different languages.

He was in a corner of the room at a desk, sitting in a large, red leather armchair, writing when there was a knock on the door.

"**What?**" He hated being disturbed in his work.

"Radcliffe?" Alana stepped into the doorway.

"Oh. Hello Alana. Do you have any news?" He asked, his voice affecting a cordial tone.

"Xuamine and Nero are here." She said.

"Oh, good!" Radcliffe got up and reached for his staff, teleporting himself to his throne room.

"So, you two. Come to pay me a visit at last, have you?" He gestured to two figures standing in a corner of the room with grey cloaks on.

The two stepped forward, lowering their cloaks to reveal a woman with straight, shoulder-length brown hair and reddish dark-brown eyes and a man with dirty blonde hair in a buzzcut and piercing green eyes.

They both had the same deathly pale skin and when they opened their mouths to speak, sharp fangs showed.

_Vampires._

"Indeed we have." The male said, smirking.

"We have ideas for our part in the takeover of Spectra and decided to inform you of the developments." The female vampire said.

"What kind of ideas, Xuamine?" Radcliffe asked.

"Why don't we show you?" Nero, the male vampire said, lifting the black tube he had strapped to his back off and handing it to Radcliffe.

When Radcliffe opened it and began to read the scroll which was inside, an evil smirk formed on his face.

"Brilliant, absolutely brilliant!" Radcliffe said, handing the scroll back.

Nero smirked.

"This and your powers will come in quite handy in a siege... _but_ now is not the time." Radcliffe said.

"WHAT?" Nero and Xuamine exclaimed in unison.

"It is a good idea, yes but like I said before, now is not the time. For one thing, for a siege we will need more of your kind. Exactly how many more have you recruited?" Radcliffe asked.

"Um..." Nero said.

Radcliffe flopped back into his throne. "I thought so."

"And you need to do this at a time that the Keepers and _**all**_ the other Immortals will be busy. Unlike previous years, I want _every single attack _in sync." He continued.

"When will they be busy then?" Xuamine asked.

"You will know when the time comes." Radcliffe answered.

"In the meantime, focus on your... _recruitment drives..._"

"I suppose you are right." Xuamine shrugged.

"Let's go, Nero!" she led the way out.

"A curious pair, those two..." Radcliffe commented after they had gone.

* * *

I decided not to rewrite the song in this chapter because it wasn't really remarkably different from what was in the show, just in case you were wondering...

_**I know most of you are Gwen fans and will be really pissed by the time you reach this point, but let me just say this- it had to be done. I didn't like doing it either, but it's critical to the rest of the story. At least she didn't go out looking deformed like she did in Australia...**_

Also, at this point, I'm announcing a _**temporary **_hiatus on this story. My exams are near and I need to devote all my spare time to them. I should be back around June or so. I'll be online occasionally, but don't expect any updates!

Until then, read and review!


	23. African Lying Society

I had a ten day break between my last exam and the next one plus I only have 3 left, so I decided in between studying for my remaining subjects that I could get cracking on this one and stop the hiatus earlier than planned. And I surprisingly had this finished in less than a week!

Also, previous chapters have been edited. Go read those!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"But how? How did we all end up voting for Gwen?" Heather asked out loud.

She and Izzy were in the common area, toying with a few Chinese snacks that Izzy had bought.

"I honestly have no clue! I was sure I didn't vote for her!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Something is really wrong here!" Heather said.

"_I'd say._" Gwen grumbled.

"_What's the matter?_" Izzy asked.

"_Guess what happened to cause everyone to vote me off. Including myself!_" Gwen said.

"_Wait, you voted __**yourself**__ off?_" Izzy and Heather asked in surprise.

"_Guess how it happened._" Bridgette said.

Silence.

"_We were all hypnotized!_" Gwen exclaimed.

"_WHAT?_" Heather and Izzy shouted in unison.

"_Somebody apparently put a hypnosis spell on everyone so that they'd vote one of you out and the luck of the draw fell on Greta!_" Lindsay exclaimed.

"_But... but... how?_" Heather asked. "_How could we not know we were under hypnosis?_"

"_I'm curious about that too. Even after it broke, how could it... wow._" Bridgette said.

"_Marissa and Aideen's granddaughter Kimberly apparently noticed it in the way you guys acted after the voting and she called them both about it. She was the first to notice, but she wasn't the only one. Some of the older grandchildren noticed as well and were calling about it too. Heck, when Jane, Vesta's oldest grandchild saw, she made a portal all the way over from England to tell her in person!_" Gwen said.

"_And when our predecessors saw the footage for themselves, they quite agreed._" Bridgette said.

"_I want to see that footage for myself._" Heather declared.

"_Me too!_" Izzy exclaimed.

"_Well, good luck with that..._" Gwen closed off her part of the Link, followed by Bridgette and then Lindsay.

"I wanna see that voting footage!" Izzy declared, standing up and banging the table with a fist.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy: **"I havea mission today. Find out why the voting went the way it did in the last episode..." She pulled a pair of sunglasses out of her skirt and put them on. "... and put an end to this election fraud..."

* * *

Izzy and Heather had somehow managed to sneak inside Chris' private quarters and opened another door inside which lead to a room full of screens and video equipment.

"_If only we had a technopath now..._" Heather thought, gazing at all the complicated looking controls.

"Oh, lookie! Here's a play button!" Izzy said, pointing to a bright red button with 'Play' written on it.

"That was convenient..." Heather said in surprise as Izzy pressed the button.

The Confessional votes played before them and they noticed the glazed over look in their eyes as well.

"I can't believe it!" Heather exclaimed in outrage, stomping a foot on the ground.

"You'd better believe it." Izzy said, actually looking grim.

"HEY! WHO'S IN MY VIDEO EDITING ROOM?" Chris' voice shouted from outside.

"Uh-oh..." Izzy and Heather looked at each other worriedly.

The door's handle began to shake and Izzy got an idea.

"He, he..." She chuckled mischievously as she rubbed her hands together.

Heather actually looked worried at this.

"What are yo-" Heather watched as Izzy held the door handle with both hands and made it hot.

On the other side, Chris screamed in pain and jumped up and down, holding his hands and howling.

"Come on! Let's escape through this conveniently placed air vent!" Izzy said, leaping on top of a chair, wrenching off the cover and leaping through.

Heather looked stunned for a moment, but then shrugged and followed.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"That was certainly enlightening. Something is _definitely_ up. But I still wonder how it was possible for that to happen..."

* * *

In the cargo hold, Alejandro held another orb of darkness in hands, speaking to Radcliffe.

"_That was a good job you did last episode, Alejandro. Allow me to congratulate you on successfully eliminating the Energy Keeper._"

"Thanks." Alejandro smirked.

"_Did you single Gwen out specifically?_"

"Nope. I just said to vote out Izzy, Heather or Gwen. I was personally hoping that Heather would go, but I'm not complaining." Alejandro shrugged.

"_I think I may know why that is..._" Radcliffe immediately thought of Courtney's bad luck powers and her personal hatred of Gwen.

"Why then?"

"_Not your concern at this time. Now why don't you go and have fun eliminating somebody else..._"

The orb disappeared.

Alejandro got up and was about to walk away when a voice called out to him.

"_Hypnotizing people now, eh? What's the matter? Has the Burromuerto family charm failed?_" Ezekiel's hoarse voice called out.

Alejandro frowned.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

"_I realized that the Keepers were part of the competition after London, so I decided to stay. Can't let Radcliffe do to them what he did to me, right?_"

"This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't barred him from finding the Library of Magic in Manitoba." Alejandro taunted.

"_It probably would have happened even if I hadn't barred him..._ _Was I supposed to let him find it and destroy all the books, scrolls, documents and not to mention- the Keeper portraits in it though?_"

"Why don't you show your face, Ezekiel? Afraid that it's too ugly?" He called out, chuckling after.

"_Oh I'm not afraid at all. If I can allow myself to be seen on International television like this do you think I __**really**__ care for looks, eh?_" Ezekiel stepped from behind a crate.

He looked worse than ever. His hair was gone, save for a few strands, his skin was pale and covered in scratches, his hat and shoes were missing and the clothes that were left looked as if they had been put through a shredder.

"Not looking very good yourself, Ezekiel Miller."

"_I've seen better days, personally..._" Ezekiel shrugged.

"What are you going to do? Rip me to shreds with tiger teeth? Strangle me as a giant snake?" Alejandro mocked him. "Oh, that's right; you can't shape-shift anymore!" Alejandro laughed evilly. "Sucks to be you."

"_Not as much as it will..._" Ezekiel coughed. _"... 'suck' to be you if you don't get out of Radcliffe's grasp soon. I'm sure you've brought more scrutiny to this show now, hypnotizing the Keepers and all... __**Brilliant**__ idea by the way, eh..._" Ezekiel said sarcastically before disappearing.

Alejandro growled in fury. "You are gone!" He stomped his way out of the cargo hold.

* * *

"What happened to your hair?" Heather asked.

"Not that we miss it!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Looking good, Chris! Well, not really..." Alejandro called out.

"Hey Chris, nice dress!" Duncan called out.

The four of them burst out laughing.

Chris glared at them all, standing in his African costume.

"It's traditional Masai warrior garb. _And_ it came with this!" Chris pulled a spear out of nowhere and threw it at Duncan who narrowly dodged it.

"Watch it!" He exclaimed.

"Trust me, that's the least dangerous thing that'll happen to you today." Chris chuckled.

"Welcome to beautiful Tanzania! Home of the Serengeti Plains... and over seventy different types of animals that can kill you!"

"Ooh! We're in Africa! Home of the lions! Rawr!" Izzy made clawing motions with her hands.

"Okay then..." Chris, as indeed many of the contestants looked weirded out.

The contestants soon heard a lot of clunking noises not far off.

"What is that noise?" Chris looked puzzled.

When they all looked, they saw Sierra coming towards them, _with Cody in her backpack and a bunch of cans tied to the back of said backpack which was responsible for all the noise..._

"Sorry we're late!" Sierra exclaimed.

"What's with all the cans?" Chris raised an eyebrow.

"Oh. I didn't have time to finish the _"Just Married"_ banner. You like?" Sierra asked.

"_Very _walking dinner bell for lions! You okay in there Cody?" Chris glanced around to the techno-geek in the back, who muttered unintelligibly.

"Pure poetry, man. I can see married life is treating you well." Chris said.

"Due to the temporarily weakened condition of my husband... I just love saying that..." Sierra started.

"_Creep!_" Heather thought.

"_Psycho!_" Izzy thought.

"... I'll play for the both of us." Sierra finished.

"Okay... Challenge time!" Chris exclaimed as he led them over to the scene of the first challenge.

* * *

"Part 1 combines two of Africa's most popular sports. Soccer and cricket. I call it. "_Soc-et_ to me! The 'me' in that being _you,_ of course." Chris explained, holding up a soccer ball and a cricket bat.

Heather was looking at Chef Hatchett who was dressed in the weird combination of a cricket uniform- the batting helmet, kneepads and gloves and a soccer uniform- everything else.

"What's Chef wearing?" Heather raised an eyebrow.

"Oh we just decided to use him as a demonstration of what players from both sports would wear. It looks good on him, _doesn't it?_" Chris smirked- and then had to dodge a flying gourd which missed the intended target, but collided with Cody's head instead.

"Each player must run one at a time from the starting line to that pile of African plums, grab as many as you can carry and run back. And you'll be doing all of this while your fellow competitors pummel you with soccer balls." Chris said.

"Ooh! Pummeled by a soccer ball! How painful!" Duncan mocked him.

Chris promptly threw the soccer ball he was holding at Duncan which made a direct impact with his head.

"AAH!" Duncan screamed in pain as Alejandro who was beside him, chuckled.

"You were saying?" Chris asked.

"Next, take the plums you've brought back and whack them with the cricket bat to crack those gourds open. Like this." Chris threw a plum into the air and whacked it towards one of the gourds. It missed the gourd completely and would have collided with Chef if he hadn't ducked.

"Watch where you batting those things, foo'!" Chef shook his fist angrily.

"Whoever cracks their gourd open first wins a reward that will be _muy _helpful in the next challenge! Now, positions, people! Wifey, you're up first!" Chris exclaimed.

* * *

At Playa De Losers 2, Gwen and Lindsay sat watching the episode together. Courtney across the room occasionally glowered at the two.

"You would think she'd stop doing that..." Gwen whispered to Lindsay.

"That's not going to happen any time soon..." Lindsay whispered back.

"True..." Gwen replied.

Gwen glanced at the C.I.T. again and studied the barely visible markings on her skin.

"_Those marks really are weird..._" She thought.

"_And creepy..._" Lindsay shuddered.

The two glanced at the television to see Izzy running to grab her plums.

"Banzai! Death to the emperor! AHAHA!" She shrieked as she somehow managed to hold all of her plums as Heather, Duncan, Alejandro and Sierra were all kicking the soccer balls at her in rapid succession.

Alejandro even kicked one that they were sure would make impact but Izzy pulled off a Matrix type move and dodged the all of the balls zooming over her easily- while _still_ maintaining possession of _all_ her plums.

"How does she DO that?" Several of the others wondered aloud.

When the two Keepers looked around the room again, they noticed that Courtney was missing.

"_Where did she disappear to?_" They thought.

* * *

Courtney had gotten a call from Radcliffe telling her to meet someone who would be in her room and who would also be carrying a solution to the marks on her skin.

"_This has better be good._" She thought.

A petite Asian woman was sitting on a chair in her room looking decidedly bored as she examined a television remote.

"Hello Courtney." The woman said.

"Who _are_ you?" Courtney said in a suspicious tone.

The woman raised an eyebrow. "I think you know who I am."

Courtney raised an eyebrow right back. "How do I know you are to be trusted?" She asked.

"You don't. However I do have what Radcliffe sent for you so shut up if you want it." The woman snapped.

Courtney huffed and the woman rolled her eyes.

The woman magicked up and handed to her what looked like a harmless handbag but was the exact opposite.

"Look inside." She commanded.

Courtney did and saw a small diamond shaped bottle of a light pink liquid and a simple onyx necklace.

"That bottle contains a potion called the Liquid Masquerade. I made it myself and Radcliffe himself spelled it so that it will never run out. It is a potion with very limited shape-shifting capabilities which you will need to drink it once a day so the marks will subside completely and you maintain your normal appearance." The woman explained.

"And the necklace?" Courtney held it up.

"That necklace is a very special magical artifact. If you want to speak with him, the necklace will act as a communication device in a less conspicuous way by allowing you to speak into it and only you will be able to hear his responses. Also, if you need to travel somewhere at any time, just focus on your destination and voila! You're there!" The woman continued.

"Impressive." Courtney fastened the necklace around her neck and it glowed slightly for a moment when she did.

"And remember, you must consume the Liquid Masquerade every day. If you don't the marks will return in their full force." The woman stood up and teleported out.

Courtney stared blankly at the spot the woman was in before shrugging and uncorking the bottle, downed the contents sputtering and coughing slightly ("This stuff tastes like a malt and salt mixed together!") and watched as the bottled refilled itself quickly.

She hid the bottle in her dresser, and looking in the mirror with an evil smirk noting the disappearance of all her marks, exited the room.

* * *

"Remember, first person to smash through gets the advantage. Now, _GO!_" Chris said after all the contestants had retrieved their plums.

Sierra started off and whacked a few of them towards the gourds, all of them missing their targets.

Duncan managed to hit a gourd. It didn't smash, but it did crack.

"I'm used to hitting things _with_ the bat! No middleman!" He exclaimed.

Izzy went next.

The contestants began screaming and ran for cover as soon as she took up the bat.

She managed to hit everything _EXCEPT_ the gourd.

The plums hit the stands the gourds were on, knocked a bird out of the sky, knocked a baboon out of a tree, hit Chef Hatchett in his batting helmet and she swung back the bat too hard at one point and sent _that_ flying- straight into Duncan's kiwis.

He keeled over in pain. "Why is it always me?" He wailed.

The other contestants were cowering in fear. "Are you quite done yet?" Chris asked, hiding behind Chef.

"Yeah, I'm good!" Izzy nonchalantly took up the bat and walked away humming.

Heather watched her go with a weirded out expression on her face.

"_Seriously, how do you do that?_" Heather asked.

"_Do what?_" Izzy asked in return.

"_How the hell did you get so crazy?_"

"_Do you REALLY want to know the answer to that question?_" Izzy raised an eyebrow.

Heather shuddered. "_Good point..._"

Heather went next. "_As long as I beat Alejandro, I'm good._" She thought as she swung.

Her fist swing caused a plum to go high into the air and make impact with Alejandro's head.

"HEY! Watch it Heather!" He growled.

Heather threw another one at him deliberately.

He glared at her.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"One day Heather, you will get what's coming to you... _One day..._" He laughed evilly.

* * *

The next plum she batted hit Alejandro again.

"_Is she seriously aiming for me or something?_" He thought.

"Oh yeah. They're meant for each other." Chris grinned at them.

"SHUT UP CHRIS!" Heather and Alejandro shouted in unison.

The two turned to glare at each other.

"STOP SAYING WHAT I SAY!"

More glaring.

"**CUT IT OUT!**"

"Okay, this is ridiculous!" Alejandro exclaimed, rubbing his head still sore from the impact of the plums.

"Awww, aren't they cute?" Izzy suddenly popped up between them. "I ship them too Chris!" She exclaimed.

"I know, _right?_" Chris said mischievously.

Alejandro and Heather turned to glare at him instead.

"Anyway, I've got a challenge to finish." Heather took up the bat again and this time managed to smash through a gourd.

"And the winner of our first challenge is- Heather!" Chris announced.

"YES!" Heather cheered. "Batta, batta swing batta!" She swung the bat again.

Alejandro found himself smiling at her unconsciously.

* * *

"The rest of you have ten seconds left to crack your gourd. And _trust me, _you want what's inside." Chris said. Heather stood next to him having already won the challenge.

Alejandro's next swing cracked his gourd.

Seeing this, Duncan decided to just throw his bat at a gourd and sighed with relief when it split open.

Izzy's next swing not only cracked open the gourd but made impact with Chef's stomach, knocking him over.

Sierra sighed as she eyed the lone plum she had left. "Last one..." She said. "Here goes!"

The plum missed the gourd and hit Chef, who was just getting up from Izzy's swing, knocking him over again.

Sierra winced.

"No success for Cody or Sierra. Which of course, will make it much harder for them to deal- with _**this!**_" Chris pointed at a crate being wheeled in by several interns.

The strange thing was that the crate was growling, shaking and making scratching noises. It also did not help that the interns wheeling it in were looking most terrified.

"Should we be running right now?" Duncan asked in fear.

Alejandro smirked. "_Sure. Run you little coward. See where that gets you._" He chuckled.

"Yes, you should be scared. Part 2 of our challenge is a genuine African safari! And the prey?" Chris knocked on the crate, which shook and snarled violently when he did, scaring the ever-loving crap out of most of the contestants.

"Why only the most dangerous and chauvinistic animal of all!" He paused for dramatic effect as the interns fought over who would have to open the crate and shoved one unfortunate intern towards it with a crowbar who opened it and ran away screaming as soon as he did.

"It's... EZEKIEL!" Ezekiel emerged from the shadows of the cage, looking even more deranged than the contestants had seen him.

"But... you shoved his dirty butt out of the plane in London!" Heather said in surprise.

"I know! He's like a one-man cockroach infestation! But we got an anonymous tip from someone- we have no idea who or how they knew that he was still there..." Chris shuddered for a moment, creeped out.

"... we wanted Chef to do it but he wouldn't budge for some reason. So we sent the interns down there instead for a miniature safari of their own..." Chris smirked as he relieved the memory of what happened.

* * *

_The interns were all down in the cargo hold wearing safari gear and carrying various weapons._

_Ezekiel's shadow loomed in the farthest, darkest part of the cargo hold._

"_So... How are we getting him?" One intern asked._

_One of the few females there shrugged. _

"_Oh, I know!" One of the other females said._

"_How?" Another asked._

"_Eeenie... meenie... miney... I ain't going!" She folded her arms across her chest and looked at the others expectantly._

_The others looked at each other incredulously but went ahead._

_Ezekiel moved behind some crates and they followed. _

_All of a sudden, with an almighty roar, he leapt over their heads and ran towards the intern who had refused to go who ran away screaming as he chased her around._

"_I view this as karmic somehow." The one who was later to open the crate shrugged as they went after him._

_Ezekiel took a sharp turn and hid inside a particularly large, high crate._

"_Where is he?" An intern asked._

_His question was answered by Ezekiel suddenly leaping from the crate and landing right on top of them._

_What followed could only be described as a vicious fight, one so vicious it couldn't (or shouldn't!) be described..._

* * *

"It was hilarious!" Chris exclaimed joyfully.

"You are one sick _***censored***_ you know that?" Heather raised an eyebrow at him.

"Why thank you!" Chris seemed touched.

"I should warn you though that he's _totally_ feral due to all that time with the _animals._ Whoever nabs the beast formerly known as Ezekiel, wins invincibility and First Class seats to our next destination!" Chris said.

"With the player of their choice, blah, blah, blah. Where's my reward?" Heather asked impatiently.

"In a second!" Chris said, frustratedly. "Go to your gourds and check inside. They contain what you'll use to hunt with!"

Duncan cheered when he retrieved a slingshot. "Yes! Do you know how many windows I've broken with one of these?"

Heather pulled out her items and rolled her eyes. "What's the pocket for? Magic beans?" She asked sarcastically.

"I could do with some magic beans!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Close... Tranquilizer balls!" Chris held up one and squished it between his fingers.

"Swing 'em with enough velocity and they burst on contact, numbing the area and releasing a hearty dose of sleepy time goodness." Chris got out a tranquilizer ball and slingshot of his own.

"Watch as this intern demonstrates." Chris aimed for the intern that had run away and had now returned, eating a sandwich.

When the tranquilizer ball made impact, the intern froze for a moment, dropped his sandwich and keeled over unconscious.

"See?" Chris asked. "It's like paintball, only with naps!"

"Okay, stand back people. We're going to give the violent psycho a head start. Hey Chef!" He called out to Chef Hatchett who was now wearing safari gear himself.

"Release the beast!" Chris called out.

Chef unlocked the cage and moved quickly away.

Ezekiel snarled, leapt out of the cage and ran off.

"It doesn't even look like him anymore!" Sierra exclaimed.

"Well it sure smells like him..." Heather held her nose in disgust.

"Since Heather won, she gets six tranq balls." He handed them to her.

"Alejandro and Izzy, you both cracked yours open so you both get three each." He handed them theirs.

"Duncan, two."

Duncan immediately began to protest. "Hey! I should get three! I cracked my gourd too!"

"Technically, you beat your gourd with a cricket bat. And Sierra, since nether you or Cody even managed to dent your gourds, you get these." He handed her two masks and two tranquilizer balls.

"No slingshot?" Sierra sounded disappointed.

"Nope. You're just gonna have to throw the balls hard enough to make them burst, which will be hilariously unsuccessful, I'm sure. Now, GO!" Chris shouted as Chef blew an abeng.

The contestants ran off.

* * *

Izzy wandered off by herself, humming.

"_Now, where is that Zekey?_" She thought.

She climbed up in a tree and began to survey her surroundings, pulling out her sunglasses and putting them on again.

She spotted a pride of lions in the distance.

"Ooh! I see lions!" Izzy shot out the top of the tree, did a back flip, landing smoothly on the ground and began to sneak up on the pride.

"_Great practice for when I find Zeke- although how did he get like that? Surely the cargo hold isn't THAT bad, is it?_" She wondered.

"_That is another mystery to solve later though._" She said as she crouched on a nearby rock which was hidden behind some bushes.

"Hi guys!" She suddenly appeared hanging upside down from a tree above them.

The lions began to growl at her.

"Now don't you start to get all 'growly' at me!" Izzy snapped.

The lions only roared even louder and one male got particularly bold and leapt at her, knocking her out of the tree.

It had her pinned down and looked as if it wanted to have her for its lunch, but Izzy didn't even look worried.

"I'm warning you, buddy, let me up or you _WILL_ regret it!" Izzy glared at it.

The lion made a sound that could have passed as a laugh.

"Okay. You asked for it!" Izzy flung the lion off her and with the rest of the pride watching with looks of terror on their lion-y faces, Izzy proceeded to beat the ever loving crap out of it.

The lion ran away whimpering, tail between its legs.

"Yeah, you'd BETTER run!" Izzy shook a fist after it.

* * *

Meanwhile Heather, Alejandro and Duncan were walking together.

"I think we should hunt Ezekiel as a pack, don't you?" Alejandro asked, putting an arm around Heather and Duncan's shoulders.

"_Why should I?_" Heather thought. "_I don't like or trust either of you!_"

"No way!" She exclaimed. "Why should I be in an alliance with either of you? You'll just get in my way. I am going it alone." She strided off.

"Then I salute your bravery and bid you good hunting." Alejandro said.

Heather glanced back to glare at him. "And I bid you good losing."

After she was out of earshot, Duncan spoke.

"How far do you think she'll get?" He asked.

"Not far without these." Alejandro opened his palm to reveal Heather's tranquilizer balls. "I stole them in the huddle." He grinned.

"Are you sure you haven't been to jail?" Duncan asked.

"_I'm pretty sure. Unlike you, I'm too smart to get caught._" Alejandro thought smirking.

* * *

Heather approached a rustling bush.

"Gotcha, geek face!" She rummaged in her pouch for a tranq ball.

"What the? Where are my tranq balls?" She wondered out loud.

She went wide-eyed when she heard a loud roar and stepped back, terrified when she saw a lion emerge- the same lion that Izzy had beaten up earlier.

And man was he _pissed._

"Um, oh my gosh... Nice kitty, heh-heh." Heather stammered.

"Where's my ammo? WHERE IS IT?" She searched for it panicky.

"_Heather, get out of there now! Alejandro took your tranq balls in the huddle!_" Gwen called out.

Heather gasped. "Alejandro!" Heather growled.

The lion came next to her and roared again.

Heather screamed and began to run away but stopped in her tracks when she heard Izzy's voice shrieking a battle cry.

"**NANTS INGONYAMA BAGITHI BABA!**" Izzy leapt on top of the lion and began wrestling it.

"_Somebody's been watching too much Lion King lately..._" Heather thought.

"_I loved that movie as a kid and now I actually know what that sentence actually means!_" Izzy cheered.

"_Good for you._" Heather said sarcastically.

"Didn't I tell you to behave yourself, Leo?" Izzy wrestled it up, pulled riding gear out of nowhere and fixed it on him.

"Heather, meet Leo, my new Lion Mobile. Hop on!" Izzy beckoned to the Queen Bee, who raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"You don't expect me to ride on top of a lion, do you?" Heather asked.

"We have a pretty fast vehicle that can help us catch Zeke, don't we?" Izzy asked.

"I'm still not riding on top of a lion. **It could kill us!**" Heather folded her arms.

"We have a better chance of beating Alejandro!" Izzy grinned.

Heather ran up to the lion and leapt onto his back. "Giddy-up, Leo!"

Leo reared, roared and bolted off.

* * *

At Playa Des Losers 2, the losers were watching Sierra trying to get Cody out of the tree when they heard voices outside.

"Well, you're back Bridgette, safe and sound." A male voice said.

"_Bridgette?_" Everyone perked up.

A moment later, Bridgette stepped into the room, looking tired, but happy.

Most of the contestants abandoned the television and ran over to her.

"**BRIDGEY-BEAR!**" Geoff was the first to reach her, giving her a kiss that must have lasted at least a minute before they pulled away from each other.

Lindsay shoved him out of the way next. "Bridgette!" She squealed, giving her a tight hug.

"It's good to see you too!" Bridgette said, hugging her back.

She glanced over to see Gwen standing aside, smiling.

"Gwen! How are you?" She asked, hugging her tightly.

"_**Too- tight- can't breathe!**_" Gwen gasped, shoving her away.

"I should be the one asking you how you're doing!" Gwen said.

After the fuss calmed down slightly, Gwen and Lindsay noticed Travis and Milah standing in the doorway giving them meaningful looks, so they walked over. Bridgette followed.

"You don't know us yet, Gwen, Lindsay, so we thought we'd introduce ourselves. I'm Travis Bryan, Marissa's son." Travis said.

Before they could say anything, Milah spoke up. "And I am his wife, Jamilah Bryan, née Robinson. Call me Milah though. Everyone does. Aideen is my mother."

"Woah. How'd you get involved in this Bridgette in Siberia mess?" Gwen said.

"We were actually in Paris visiting Adrian, one of Deanna's sons when mum called. Since I do work for the Canadian Consulate and I was relatively near to Siberia at the time, we decided to go ahead!" Travis explained.

"And thanks for that too!" Bridgette smiled.

"Anyway, we must leave before our daughters Kimberly and Talia destroy the house... It was nice meeting you though. Only sorry it had to be this way!" Milah waved as they walked away.

The three Keepers walked back to the television room, Bridgette immediately cuddling beside her boyfriend, Lindsay going to hers and Gwen taking a separate chair.

"_I'm glad that worked out well._" Gwen thought.

"_So am I!_" Bridgette and Lindsay thought in unison.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sierra was still trying unsuccessfully to get Cody out of the tree when Izzy, Heather and Leo knocked into her.

"Stupid lion!" Heather muttered, rubbing her head before jumping off.

"Cody's stuck in that tree!" Sierra pointed up.

Heather, Izzy and even Leo glanced up to see Cody hanging in the tree by the straps of his backpack, still in his catatonic state.

"Remind me never to go near Love Me Tea..." Heather said. Izzy nodded in agreement.

"Well don't just stand there, help me get him down!" Sierra exclaimed.

Izzy leapt off the lion which immediately ran away and began to climb the tree to retrieve him, when they all heard the sounds of a baboon nearby.

Izzy and the others glanced up to see a baboon holding Cody and carrying him off.

"**FOLLOW THAT HOMEWRECKER!**" Sierra shrieked, running off.

Izzy glanced down at Heather who shrugged at her and went off behind Sierra. Izzy somersaulted out of the tree and followed.

* * *

Alejandro and Duncan were walking together.

"_Quicksand- ugh! How could I not have seen that coming? I mean, I walked right into it!_" Alejandro thought.

The bushes nearby began to rustle. Alejandro put out a hand to stop Duncan.

"Something's moving fast!" Duncan said.

"It must be Ezekiel." Alejandro said. "Ready your tranqs! On my count, one, two, three, CHARGE!" He and Duncan ran out yelling at the same time Izzy, Heather and Sierra ran out screaming.

The tranq balls hit each one of them, making them all fall to the ground asleep.

Chris and Chef walked up, both of them face-palming. "You have GOT to be kidding me. They can't go to sleep now!"

"Looks like they already are, Chris! Want me to go whip up and antidote?" Chef thumbed the plane which was in the distance.

"No, _**NO!**_" Chris waved him off.

"I've got a better idea!" Chris smirked.

The song chime rang.

"_One day I'll wipe that annoying smirk off that face of his..._" Chef muttered.

"What was that?" Chris snapped.

"Nothing at all." Chef said calmly.

"I'm sure." Chris said sarcastically.

Chris walked over to the cast. "Hello? Anyone in there?" He asked.

No response.

He went over to Duncan and opened one of the delinquent's eyes. "Did you or did you not steal the car?" Chris asked.

"I was framed!" Duncan answered.

He poked Izzy in the side with a stick. "Psycho?"

"You're so lucky I can't move now Chris or I'd snap you in two like I could do to that stick!" Izzy muttered.

"Half an hour of you guys sleeping? _Oh yeah._ That's gonna be good for ratings..." Chris said sarcastically. "I want a song. _Pronto. _No matter where the tranq balls hit you or how 'groggy' you might be. **NOW SING!**"

* * *

"Somebody better catch the Zeke fast 'cause the plane is taking off in exactly one hour with or without you!"

The contestants stared at him in disbelief.

"_I can't believe this creep!_" Heather thought.

"_Must resist the urge to commit brutal murder on live television..._" Alejandro clenched his fists.

"You ***censored* *censored* **Chris!" Izzy snarled shook a fist at him.

"Anyway..." Chris turned to Chef. "Wanna watch the tranq ball massacre on the widescreen?" He asked.

"Of course! It's always entertaining to see teenage wimps being massacred by tranquilizer balls!" Chef smiled evilly before driving off the cart, knocking Chris over.

"HEY! GET BACK HERE! AND STAY AWAY FROM MY HOT TUB!" Chris shouted, running after him.

Heather and Alejandro snickered and the glared at one another.

Izzy, Sierra and Duncan wondered off.

"I fully intend to kick your butt." Heather pushed a finger in his chest.

"And I yours. But for now, I suggest we work together. _Temporarily. _To ensure we're kicking each other's butt in the finale." Alejandro said.

"I'm listening." Heather said.

"_This isn't going to work, Heather..._" Bridgette said.

"_You're back?_" Heather asked in surprise.

"_Yep. Back on Canadian soil. But are you really going to trust him?_"

"_Relax. It's not a permanent alliance or anything!_" Heather cut her out.

"We simply continue to act awkward around each other in front of the others while we secretly combine..." Alejandro started.

"...our powers to knock everyone else out of the ring!" Heather and Alejandro finished together.

They glared at each other.

"That _has_ to stop..." Heather said. Alejandro nodded in agreement.

"...but I am in on the alliance." She continued.

"Excellent. I have the perfect plan to keep Duncan busy and capture Ezekiel." He whispered his plan to her which left her wide-eyed.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"Even _**I'M**_ not that ruthless!" She went wide-eyed again.

* * *

Meanwhile Sierra was looking for Cody again.

"Cody! Wifey's on the way!" Sierra poked her head out from a tree, upside down.

"And I'll help!" Izzy popped out beside her, startling the purple-haired girl and making her fall to the ground.

"Owww..." Sierra rubbed her head as Izzy leapt from the tree, Cody's sneaker in hand. She tossed it over to her.

"Cody's sneaker! He's close!" She sniffed it and even Izzy looked disgusted at that act.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy: **"And people call _**ME**_ crazy!" She went wide-eyed. "They obviously haven't met _**that**_ purple-haired lunatic yet!"

* * *

The two of them soon spotted Cody with a baboon.

"CODY!" Sierra ran over to him. Izzy watched from a distance, eyebrow raised.

"_Izzy?_" Aideen asked.

"_What's up, Aideen? Having the time of my life here in Tanzania!_" Izzy said.

"_Really? Well then, you're spending some time in Erendor after you leave Tanzania, so please try not to get mauled by those lions or baboons..._" Aideen cut off the Link.

"Be careful, Sierra! They like me, quite a lot it seems!" Cody exclaimed.

"Like as in _**like**_, like?" Sierra asked, glaring at the baboon at his feet, who began to massage them.

Sierra twitched. "Oh NO YOU DIDN'T!" She shouted.

The baboon snapped its fingers and several other baboons burst out of the bananas and surrounded them.

"Uh-oh..." Izzy went wide-eyed in surprise but soon back-flipped over the baboons to join Sierra in the middle.

The two of them went back to back and shrieking battle cries began to hit, kick, slap, punch and even bite the daylights out of the baboons who ran away shrieking in terror and pain.

"That was _**fun!**_" Izzy exclaimed.

The two of them turned to see the original baboon still there.

"Take your stinkin' hands off him, you darn, dirty ape!" She roared.

It took one look at her deranged expression and ran off in terror.

"Wow, Sierra. That was actually pretty impressive!" Izzy said.

"Why thanks! Mom always said that a girl has to learn how to take care of herself!" Sierra brushed herself off.

"I'm pretty sure she didn't mean that in terms of beating up baboons..." Cody said.

"Still came in useful, didn't it?" Sierra said.

"I guess so!" Cody said.

Izzy watched the two of them, puzzled.

"What are you two talking about?" She asked.

They looked at one another uneasily.

"Nothing in particular. Now let's go find Ezekiel!" Sierra grabbed Cody and leapt off, Izzy close behind.

* * *

"So... Duncan. Still in the game even though Gwen's gone? Not your best move." Heather said.

She and Alejandro were putting their plan into action.

"What are you trying t-" While Duncan was distracted, Alejandro put out his foot and tripped him, landing in a bush with red berries.

"Aah! Sick! These are rank!" Duncan complained.

"Oh no. Those must be Serengeti Blood berries! Beautiful to look at, but their juice smells just like fresh blood!" Alejandro said. "_This is going to be so much fun!_" He chuckled.

"DISGUSTING! I'm gonna go wash off..." Duncan walked over to a nearby lake.

"Are you sure this is gonna work?" Heather asked.

"Trust me." Alejandro replied. "_It will be your downfall._" He thought.

As Duncan washed one would swear that you could hear the _Jaws _theme in the background.

The water neat to the delinquent bubbled up and Ezekiel popped up, fully in a state of madness again and began to attack him.

"_BRUTAL!_" Gwen said.

"_You gotta do what you gotta do, Gwen!_" Heather replied, smirking.

"Hey guys! A little help here!" Duncan called out.

Heather and Alejandro simply smirked at him.

"**SERIOUSLY?**"

"Oh look, there's Ezekiel!" Sierra, Izzy and Cody ran up, but before they could reach, Alejandro had already tranquilized Ezekiel.

"We did it!"Alejandro and Heather were smiling and hugged each other.

They broke apart slightly and smiled at each other.

They then went wide-eyed when they realized what they were doing and turned away from each other.

"Congrats Alejandro! You are on your way to First Class!" Chris rode in the jeep as Chef drove.

"I would've had a shot if Alejandro hadn't stolen my ammo!" Heather exclaimed.

"Aww, you guys are so cute!" Chris said.

Heather threw a rock at him.

"Now grab Duncan and get on the plane so we can get the hell out of Africa before Zeke wakes up!" Chris exclaimed.

* * *

After the voting ceremony, the girls sat together in Loser Class fuming.

"That ***censored***! How could he do that? We fake-agreed to an alliance!" Heather fumed.

"We all know he isn't to be trusted!" Izzy exclaimed.

"And yet you still agreed. And now he has my husband up there away from me!" Sierra wailed.

"I will _**kill**_ him!" Heather clenched her fists.

"You won't be in the mood for killing anyone once you see Erendor!"

Izzy and Heather looked up to see Hasim and the other Keepers. Time had frozen once again.

* * *

_**A minor story to share related to KotE:**_ A friend of mine who doesn't even watch Total Drama regularly was reading Courtney's training session and looked up at me with a most freaked out look on her face. This is a girl who watches horror movies, occasionally cusses out random strangers who _look_ at her too hard and kicked a guy twice her size in the nuts for insulting me... Hell, I wrote it and it creeps me out too!

Read and review everyone!


	24. Erendor Entrance

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"We are now in the capital city of Erendor, Xenia." Hasim said.

The Keepers gasped when they saw Erendor for the first time.

Unlike the other planets they had seen so far, any technology existing here was certainly not glaringly obvious- if it was there at all...

It was very beautiful and tranquil.

First off, they had appeared on top of the tallest, thickest oak tree they had ever seen.

Around them, the buildings were made of wood, stone or a combination of both, all of them with a sort of whimsical design.

Many of said buildings were beautifully built tree houses with lots of flowers and plants growing around them.

The people wore clothing like in the other realms but there was also a significant presence of simple garb. Those who were up in the trees either flew or swung on vines to get to one another.

There was also an abundance of beautiful rock formations and wildlife roamed freely amongst the people who did not seem to mind it.

All in all, it looked like something out of a fairy tale that they had grown up reading.

"My goodness, this is gorgeous!" Bridgette said in awe.

"Uh-huh..." The other Keepers nodded in unison. Heather cold feel her fury at Alejandro melting away.

"Perhaps this is why most magical beings like to come here on vacation. Erendor is a truly peaceful, relaxing planet." Hasim agreed.

"Except maybe for that!" Heather pointed at a dragon which was clearly coming towards them.

"No worries! This dragon is actually pretty friendly, you'll find." Hasim went up to the dragon and petted it, who-

"Wait, is that dragon smiling?" Izzy asked, puzzled.

"Yes, she is." Hasim said.

"Beautiful creature she is!" Bridgette said, going nearer.

The dragon was a forest green colour, with a dark brown underbelly and the end of its tail, its snout and the insides of its ears were also dark brown. Its eyes were a lighter brown.

"What's her name?" Lindsay asked.

"You'll find out soon." Hasim said, grinning as if he knew something they didn't.

"Now let's hop on! The royal palace isn't going to come to us now is it?" Hasim leapt on.

Izzy followed eagerly, but the others weren't as enthusiastic.

"Are you sure she's safe?" Gwen asked.

"Absolutely! I have known her for quite a while!" Hasim smiled.

Bridgette, Gwen, Heather and Lindsay looked at one another incredulously before hopping on.

"Now hold on tight!" Hasim exclaimed as the dragon flapped her wings, beginning to take off.

"WOO! THIS IS FUN!" Izzy cheered as they flew over the Erendorian treetops.

People started to go to the very tops of their trees, their rooftops or flew/changed into something that could fly to get a better view of the Keepers and began to call out greetings.

"Look ahead of you now. That's the royal palace." Hasim said as they neared the outside walls of the palace- a cluster of inter-connected buildings, medieval style with plants growing along the walls at some parts.

There was a bunch of people gathered outside the buildings, including a couple wearing very regal robes with the woman holding a young child. The man was very tall, at least six and a half feet in height. He was tan and had auburn hair and dark blue eyes.

The woman was average height, had waist-length strawberry blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail and dark brown eyes. The child she held, a young boy, seemed to be the perfect mix of the two, having auburn hair and brown eyes.

The dragon landed a few feet away from them and the Keepers and Hasim got off.

"Hello Keepers!" The man said.

"Thank you!" The Keepers said.

"Keepers, this is King Demetrius, Queen Hera and their son, Prince Sean." Hasim introduced.

"Charmed." Hera smiled, the kind of smile that would make you want to be friends with her.

The Keepers took to her immediately.

Demetrius noticed this. "That smile is what first got my attention years ago." He said.

"He doesn't deny it." Hera grinned.

"So, we have seen them, but where is Jamilah?" Gwen asked.

Demetrius and Hera laughed and even Sean smiled.

Hasim himself was grinning. "Look behind you!" He nodded behind them.

The Keepers turned to see the dragon still there preening itself. When it saw them looking, it got up on its hind legs and twirled. As it did, it assumed the form of a human female.

"Keepers, meet Jamilah, Erendor's Immortal." Hasim gestured to Jamilah who now stood in place of the dragon, watching the Keepers' faces with an amused expression.

"Delighted to meet you!" Jamilah said, going over to them.

"You- you- you- you were-" Heathers stammered.

"**You were the dragon?**" Izzy burst out.

Jamilah chuckled. "Hasim, I think I may make this a tradition. I did it last time with their predecessors but their reaction was better!"

"Better?" Hera raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you say that Marissa, _normally very calm_ Marissa, almost made a blizzard when you did it the last time?"

Bridgette chuckled.

"_They're telling you the dragon story, aren't they?_" Marissa asked.

"_Why yes, yes they are. How did you know?_" Bridgette asked.

"_Lucky guess._" Marissa replied tersely.

"Yes." Jamilah paused. "Perhaps Alyssa and I spend a little _too much _time together..."

"You do rub off on her too, you know." Hasim said. "She actually has developed a liking for puzzles now, when before she hated those things like the plague, almost as much as she hated math, which she actually still does..."

"Who doesn't?" Hera grumbled.

Sean touched her face and looked at her with a quizzical expression. "Mama is mad?" He asked.

"Oh don't worry, dear. Mommy's not upset. She's just talking about how much she really dislikes math! I don't know Tiana manages to do her major without going nuts!" Hera said to him.

"He's so adorable!" Bridgette cooed. Indeed the other Keepers had expressions of adoration on their faces.

"How old is Sean?" Heather asked.

"He turned two three months ago." Demetrius answered.

Hera put him down, but still held his hand.

"Ma, let me go!" Sean started to tug at her arm.

Demetrius and Hera looked at one another and then looked over at Jamilah and Hasim.

"He'll be fine!" Jamilah declared.

As soon as Hera let him go, he ran straight for one of the Keepers- Heather.

"Woah!" Heather exclaimed in surprise as the toddler almost knocked her over.

"Sean, you're a terrible judge of character, you know." Gwen said to him.

As if he recognized what the Energy Keeper said, he actually narrowed his eyes at her.

"He's a good kid." Heather said, rustling Sean's hair, standing up and brushing herself off.

"Why couldn't my little brother have been like this?" Heather asked, as she now took his hand.

"Alright, that's enough of this for now. I'm sure Prime Minister Phillips must be getting pretty annoyed waiting for us in the Central Hall." Jamilah said.

"All the better!" Demetrius said mischievously.

* * *

Prime Minister Phillips didn't seem to think so.

"What was the delay?" He asked. He was a short, pompous-looking man with receding light brown hair and brown eyes which were now narrowed at the lot in front of him.

"We were just exchanging pleasantries outside. Nothing wrong with that, is there?" Jamilah asked.

He relented. "Fine. Let's begin the tour though, shall we?"

He started walking down the hall.

"As you can see, Erendor is highly natural in appearance. Despite our appearance however, we still do have just as much technology as the other realms. We do use spells and other techniques to make it appear as you see it. Still compared to the others, we have a higher percentage of natural resources left." He said.

"How do you do that?" Izzy asked, genuinely interested.

"We have our ways." PM Phillips said simply.

Heather was now entertaining Sean by making a rosebud appear in her hand and making it open and shut.

Sean laughed in delight.

"Me hold?" He looked up at her with big, wide eyes.

Heather practically melted at his adorable look. "_Look at those eyes! Those adorable eyes! Don't bow to the look, don't... Oh what the heck?_" She handed it to him.

Hera noticed this and walked over. "He's taken to you quite well. He doesn't usually do that with anyone, not even his uncle, Demetrius' brother Prince Ramon and he's one of the liveliest people I've ever met!"

Heather shrugged. "I don't know why he likes me. Children normally avoid me like the plague..."

"_And that's so hard to understand?_" Gwen asked.

Heather glared over at her.

"And I understand that the last portrait hall you saw was Wispera's?" Phillips asked.

This got the Queen and the Earth Keeper's attention back to what he was saying.

"Yes." Gwen said.

"Okay then. I believe that Jamilah is the best person to take over from here, since she has actually met all the people in the portraits over the centuries. Besides I have a meeting to attend in Parliament and I really must leave now. If I am late, the Opposition Leader will give me hell..." PM Phillips walked off.

* * *

"Welcome to Erendor's portrait hall Keepers!" Jamilah gestured inside the next room.

It was large and had dark green banners intertwined with the rafters and wall-to-wall dark green carpeting. On one side of the wall there were portraits of the royal families and on the other side there were portraits of all the Prime Ministers. In the center wall there was a large tapestry illustrating the royal family tree and in the center of the room itself was a large circular mahogany table with matching mahogany chairs and dark green cushions.

"It's really nice." Gwen admired the simple décor of the room.

"I like it too." Bridgette said.

"It's nice." Heather admitted.

"Hello!" One female Prime Minister's portrait exclaimed. They turned to it.

After the portrait spoke, the others all awoke, both Prime Ministers and royal families.

A king in one of the royal portraits spoke up.

"The Keepers have returned, it seems." He said.

"Indeed Donovan. This is the 18th generation of Keepers. Gwen the Energy Keeper, Bridgette the Water Keeper, Izzy the Fire Keeper, Heather the Earth Keeper and Lindsay the Air Keeper." Jamilah pointed to each in turn, who demonstrated their Element. **(1)**

"Pleasant meeting you!" A queen in another portrait said.

"You all are really different from the portraits in Wispera's portrait hall!" Lindsay commented.

"A lively bunch they are!" One male Prime Minister commented.

"You only say that because your wife was Wisperan!" The first female portrait retorted.

"So?" That Prime Minister shrugged.

The Keepers laughed at these antics.

* * *

"And this is our relaxation room!" Demetrius took over the next leg of the tour.

The Keepers were lead into a large room with a swimming pool in the middle. The décor wasn't that of a normal indoor pool however. The floor all around was covered in sand and there were actually plants and trees growing from it. The water in the pool also moved like water in the sea. There was actually a pair of jet skis to one side of the pool.

Chairs and tables were set at various intervals around the pool and there were a few chests in a corner.

"This is amazing!" Bridgette said, immediately going over to the edge of the pool and putting her feet in it.

"I agree!" Izzy fully clothed, ran full force into the pool, causing a huge splash.

Sean reeled with laughter and his mother joined him.

"You're a funny one aren't you?" Hera said as Izzy pulled herself out, shaking off the excess water like a dog and using her magic to dry herself off fully.

"Amazing place to come to after you've had to deal with stressful meetings." Demetrius said. "You are welcome to come here any time you like!"

"Thank you!" The Keepers exclaimed in unison.

* * *

The Keepers, Jamilah, Hasim and the royal family were now back outside the palace gates.

"Well, it's time for you to leave us." Demetrius said.

"Have fun in Aequor!" Hera said.

"Bye bye!" Sean waved as his parents led him back inside.

"Aequor?" Gwen asked, looking at the two Immortals quizzically. "I thought we were only going to Erendor today!"

"We are! Aequor is merely another region of Erendor. Another ruler lives there. Technically Erendor consists of Xenia and five other regions, Aequor being one of them. However as with Spectra and Nexus only people with certain powers can access it." Jamilah explained.

"But it is much easier- and more pleasant to access Aequor than the Realm of the Dead..." Hasim added. "Transform and more will be explained when we get there."

The Keepers did as he asked. Jamilah transformed into a seaplane and transported Hasim that way.

* * *

The Keepers were led to a beach with the most pristine water they had ever seen.

"This has to be the most beautiful beach I have ever seen!" Bridgette said. Everyone else nodded in agreement.

As she said it, the water of the ocean began to ripple.

"What's that?" Heather asked, pointing to the water.

"Please don't say it's a sea monster!" Lindsay asked.

"Ooh! Let it be Cthulhu! I want to meet him!" Izzy said.

The Keepers looked at her weirdly.

"_**ARE YOU INSANE?**_" They asked in unison.

"I prefer to think that I don't look like a monster, thanks." A voice spoke from the water and soon a female figure emerged from it.

The figure had medium-length black hair with dark purple streaks in it which was pulled into a wavy ponytail, pale skin and lilac eyes. She wore a short sleeved black top with white sleeves which showed her stomach and various bracelets on her arms. The water covered the rest of her.

"Where is your father Marina?" Jamilah asked.

"He sent me up to get you as he and mom a bit preoccupied with Magalie now..." Marina looked a bit sad at this.

Jamilah shook her head. "Keepers, this is Marina, Princess of the Aequori mermaids. She is sixteen, just like you all."

The Keepers looked at one another in amazement. "Mermaid?" Bridgette asked puzzled. "Where's her tail?"

Marina chuckled. "Right here!" She laid back in the water and lifted her tail up. It was black and her fins got lighter, going from black to a very pale grey from the base of her tail to the tips of her fins.

"COOL!" Izzy exclaimed.

Hasim chuckled at this. "Marina, did you bring up any Waterbreathing Elixir? Bridgette can already breathe underwater and Lindsay could if she uses an Air spell but Heather, Gwen, and Izzy..."

"Way ahead of you, Hasim. Catch!" She threw three vials of a dark blue potion to those three Keepers.

"When you drink it you'll be able to breathe underwater for as long as you need to." Marina explained.

"Oh." The three quickly belted it back. Lindsay did her spell and an Air Sphere formed around her head.

"Jamilah, I'm not up for a swim today. You can accompany them." Hasim said. "I'll wait on the shore."

"Okay." Jamilah nodded and motioned for the other Keepers to follow her and Marina as she waded out into the water.

* * *

After they had swum for a while they approached the top of a cliff.

"Look down there." Marina pointed over the edge.

When the Keepers looked over the edge they saw a beautiful town with several buildings, many of them made with coral or some other substance that could be found underwater. The merpeople there swam amongst the various sea creatures present.

Over it all, there was a large glass-like castle with huge turrets in each corner.

"The magical realms just keep getting better and better, don't they?" Jamilah asked them.

They nodded.

"Wait until you see inside the castle!" Marina exclaimed.

She swam towards it and as the others followed her, the merpeople noticed them and began to cheer.

They finally reached the entrance to the castle and one of the guards removed his helmet and bowed before ushering them inside.

* * *

"Welcome to the Aequori royal castle!" Marina said.

The Keepers gazed around at their surroundings. The furniture was made of crystal, glass, pearl, coral or shell.

"I think I'm going to have to come back here more often..." Bridgette said in awe.

"Like Marissa did, huh?" Jamilah asked.

"What do you mean?" Bridgette asked.

"Marissa told you that she came to Erendor to live for a few years, right?" Jamilah said.

Bridgette nodded.

"She actually came to this specific region. Met her husband here as a matter of fact..." Jamilah said.

"Woah..." Bridgette and the other Keepers gasped in surprise.

"It was truly an amazing love story indeed." Jamilah smiled at the memory. "As a result, Paul- the husband, became human to come to Earth with her."

"Awww!" The Keepers and Marina cooed.

"Yep. And that is why I believe that their children Travis, Joseph and Janna can all breathe underwater without assistance. Even their grandchildren, Nadia, the twins Marla and Carla and mutual grandkids with Aideen and William Kimberly and Talia inherited that ability as well. The third on the way will probably get it too. Naturally, they are all great swimmers." Jamilah said.

"_What is she saying now?_" Marissa asked.

"_Seriously, how do you know when people are talking about you?_" Bridgette asked.

"_I just do. So, what is she saying?_" Marissa asked again.

"_She's telling us about you and Paul. Quite a lovely story really._" Bridgette replied.

"_It is, isn't it?_" Bridgette could practically feel her predecessor beaming.

"Marina, where are your parents?" Jamilah asked.

"I left them in Magalie's room." Marina said.

As she said it Bridgette detected sadness coming from her.

"What is the matter?" She asked.

Marina looked startled. "Magalie is ill. Has been for days. If she gets worse, Jamilah will have to transfigure her and take her to a hospital on the surface..."

"Oh my..." The Keepers said in unison.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Gwen asked.

"I don't know. You'll have to see her to decide..." Marina led them down several corridors until they entered another room.

* * *

The next room they entered was obviously that of a young girl. There were toys and decorations all around the room to indicate that.

In the very center of the room was a large bed made of shell with pink cushions and sheets inside it. In the bed lay a young girl, with a simple white tank-top and dark pink tail, no more than seven. Her black hair was in two short curly pigtails and she was sleeping poorly.

Her mother, a woman with long, wavy honey brown hair and tired looking lilac eyes who wore a simple light blue blouse and had a dark blue tail was on one side holding one hand.

Her father, a man with shoulder length black hair and brown eyes with a dark green tail held her other hand. He was the first to notice the new arrivals.

"Keepers, this is King Rohan and Queen Cordula." Jamilah said softly.

They nodded in acknowledgement.

"How is she doing, mum, dad?" Marina asked, going forward.

"Not too good. I'm afraid Jamilah will have to take her to the surface for help..." Vanessa answered.

"_Hmmm... I wonder..._" Bridgette thought.

She moved forward to the little mermaid girl.

"Can I try healing her before you give up?" She asked.

They seemed startled by her suggestion.

"Bridgette, you might not be able to do that. It isn't a minor illness like the flu that you can make disappear easily..." Jamilah pointed out.

"Maybe, but..." Bridgette held her hands above Magalie for a few moments before glowing softly.

After about a minute, Magalie's eyes opened and she looked toward her mother.

"Mommy, I feel better, but I'm still tired..." She yawned.

Everyone looked amazed at this.

"Wow. I have never known healing magic alone to be that strong, even in a Water Keeper!" Jamilah remarked.

Once she saw that her little sister was going to be fine, Marina swum over to Bridgette and hugged her tightly.

"Thank you for saving her!" Marina squealed.

"No problem!" Bridgette smiled before they parted.

"Impressive!" Gwen complimented her.

"That was pretty good!" Heather admitted.

Bridgette beamed with the praise she was given.

"Dad..."

Everyone turned to look at Magalie.

"It's the Water Keeper that made me not sick any more right?" She asked.

He nodded and held her hand tighter.

Magalie rummaged around under her pillow and pulled out a simple gold chain with a crystal heart-shaped pendant on it.

"I want her to have this, since she was so nice to me..." She whispered before falling asleep again.

"Really?" Bridgette swam over to her and gently removed it from her hand.

* * *

When they all returned to the surface about an hour later, they found Hasim there leaning against a palm tree reading a book and eating jellybeans.

"Marina! You look much more cheerful! Is Magalie well again?" He asked, making the book disappear.

"Yes! Bridgette was absolutely brilliant!" Marina cheered.

"It is true. Bridgette's healing magic was stronger than I have ever seen it." Jamilah said. She turned to her. "Perhaps you should consider pursuing medicine?"

"I've thought of it, but I'm not sure..." Bridgette replied.

"After that Bridgette, you like, totally should!" Lindsay said, detransforming. The others did the same and Izzy used her magic to dry them all off.

Bridgette chose then to put on the necklace that Magalie had given her.

"I must take my leave now. I know the competition is soon to be over, so I wish both of you still in it good luck." Jamilah smiled at Izzy and Heather before changing into a macaw and flying off.

"Back again!" Hasim smiled as he, Heather and Izzy appeared in the common area.

"Indeed we are!" Izzy grinned.

"Like Jamilah said, the competition is nearing its end, so I wish the best of luck to the two of you. May the best Keeper win!" He cheered.

Izzy and Heather pumped the air with their fists.

"**However...**" Hasim said, this time in a serious tone which quite startled them.

"Be careful who you cavort with in this game." He said.

Before they could ask him what he meant, he had disappeared.

* * *

**(1)** Long before I published this story when I was deciding the timeline, I decided that the 12th century year I would be using would be 1110. In this story, I decided that TDWT takes place in 2010, exactly 900 years later. Divide 900 by 50 which is the time it takes for every generation to be revealed and you get 18. Just in case you were wondering...

I think that this was actually pretty good for an "another world" filler chapter! Only one more magical planet to see!

Read and Review!


	25. Rapa Phooey!

Sorry for the extremely long wait! There could be plenty of excuses I could give you but I won't bother! I will just do my best to get chapters out faster since I FINALLY have a new laptop! I may write a sequel for this, depends on if I get enough ideas on how to make it work and it will decide how this one will end so we'll see. Thoughts?

Also, KOTE's birthday was yesterday. This story is officially a year old!

On another happy note (for me at least!), I got to go to Rihanna's homecoming concert last week Friday!

_**And . IT. WAS. AWESOME!**_

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Nasira, Hasim, Marcus, Jamilah, Alyssa and Samuel sat in Alyssa's basement again.

"So, let's discuss this latest bit of information that we've gotten about Radcliffe, shall we?"

He waved his staff and a projection of a figure in a hooded cloak appeared, speaking.

"_I'm sorry. I cannot reveal myself to you, no matter how much I want to. It would place me in too much danger, among other things. What I can say is that you really should keep an eye out on Alejandro. He is the son of Santos and Marisela Burromuerto former Human Shape-Shifter and current witch respectively, younger brother of Carlos and Jos__é__ and the nephew of Julio Burromuerto the hypnotist." _

"_Ever since Santos lost his powers in a shape-shifting attempt gone very awry he disappeared for a while and somehow remade himself as a diplomat in his homeland. He accomplished this with Radcliffe's help. In exchange for this Radcliffe has asked for Alejandro's services for messing with the Keepers in game. Marisela actually has no idea of what is going on within her family. She has nothing to do with this. Neither does Carlos, who is the same man you now know as Tiana's boyfriend. Guess why the brothers never come when she invites them... Also, he is the one responsible for Ezekiel's behaviour in Tanzania..."_

Hasim made the image disappear.

The room was silent for a moment before Samuel spoke up. "Even before I realised he had powers, I never trusted that _boy_ from the beginning!"

"Oh really?" Alyssa raised an eyebrow. "What about the first few episodes of Total Drama World Tour, _**Cheffy?**_"

"Well, a little after the beginning anyway... I'll do my best to keep him away from the girls. Question though. Do I break the façade of Chef Hatchett and tell them that I am Samuel?" He asked.

"I see no need for that yet. However Sierra and Cody on the other hand..." Jamilah spoke up.

"But you will need to let Princess Sierra and Cody know about Alejandro." Marcus said. "They both know he's evil, but have no idea that he was the one who organized Gwen's elimination with that little trick he learnt from his uncle and messed with Ezekiel. They need to keep him away from them, especially Heather..."

"And the more recent update we also got about Courtney. Wow. He's pulling all the stops this time, isn't he?" Alyssa said.

"Granting power in exchange for her services. I must admit, that was a brilliant move on his part, recruiting her like that." Nasira said.

"So what do we do to keep an eye on the Keepers back at Playa Des Losers 2 then? We have no one to keep an eye on them there..." Alyssa said.

"I have an idea if Marissa and Aideen will agree..." Samuel said.

Everyone turned to look at him.

"Aideen's grandson from Anya, Shane is doing Media Studies at University of Toronto right?" Samuel asked.

Everyone nodded.

"And Kimberly, Aideen and Marissa's mutual granddaughter and Travis and Milah's daughter is into media and things like that, right?" He continued.

They nodded again.

"If everyone agrees to it, perhaps Shane could pretend to observe the production process, claiming it to be part of his studies. Kimberly could go along if she wants to, but Shane's studies will be their cover. She'll just visit him, pretending that it is an ordinary visit. It's being filmed on a weekend so Kimberly could spend the weekend with Marissa in Toronto if she likes. This is only temporary though because the location where the losers are will be moved to the final destination soon." Samuel suggested.

"That's a brilliant idea!" Alyssa exclaimed.

"I must agree with Alyssa on this one." Marcus said. "That is a good idea. But will Marissa, Aideen, Anya, Travis and Milah agree? I certainly know Shane and Kimberly would..."

"Well Shane is 20 and Kimberly is 18 so I think they'd be more than capable of making decisions of their own." Hasim said.

Nasira thought for a moment. "That could work..." She said after a while. "But is it wise to get Kimberly into this? I know she can be a good person sometimes, but her personality is mostly... _insufferable..._"

"Perhaps, but she is more than capable on the magical front, so maybe we should give her a chance." Jamilah said.

"Well then, do we ask?" Samuel asked.

"I think we do!" Hasim exclaimed.

"What about Carlos and Marisela? We can't just let them go ignorant!" Alyssa exclaimed.

"I'll tell Carlos and Tiana about this in case Radcliffe tries to use him to get to her. Jamilah, can you go in another form and let Marisela know what's happening?" Marcus asked.

"I most certainly will!" Jamilah declared.

"What about Nadir? Aren't the Keepers supposed to go there next? Will Sierra go with you, Hasim?" Alyssa asked.

"Actually, I am not going this time." Hasim said. "Sierra said that she would love to take them on her own and I have no problem with that. Plus Vesta and the other Old Keepers have said that they would like to take the girls to Hamilton..."

"And I'm watching that little twerp, _Al. _I can't wait to see him go down!" Samuel/Chef punched his palm, switching his beanie for his Chef's hat.

"Radcliffe's plans are falling down all around his ears!" Alyssa grinned.

"And I actually can't wait to see his reaction to it. He was always an overly arrogant fellow..." Marcus said, getting up from the table. The others followed suit.

* * *

Cody stretched and yawned in his seat.

"Being in First Class rocks!" He exclaimed.

"Indeed it does!" Alejandro commented.

"_I know what you're up to, you know. Don't think you can play me now!_" Cody thought.

"My socks are still on? I'm still in the same position I fell asleep in? I don't smell like crazy? Sierra left me alone all night!" Cody exclaimed.

"Well Sierra did try to sneak in seven times, but I sleep with one eye open for a reason." Alejandro boasted.

"_And maybe I should too, around you!_" Cody thought.

"Thanks! Thanks so much!" Cody exclaimed eagerly. "_Thank goodness for drama class at school..._" He thought.

Alejandro smirked evilly, thinking that Cody was putty in his well chiselled hands.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **He yawned a bored sort of yawn. "Win African challenge; invite pathetically grateful nerdling to First Class, win today's challenge, get nerdling to vote for Heather. Done, done and oh _so close I can taste it..._"

* * *

Alejandro strolled into First Class with a cart full of sweets. Several different kinds. Candied apples, lollipops, bonbons...

Cody went wide-eyed at this.

"While you were sleeping, Chris delivered my prize for winning!" Alejandro explained.

Cody's mouth watered at the sight before him. "_Must keep clear head!_" He shook it to clear it.

He lifted one of the candied apples and removed something from his bag that looked like a handheld barcode scanner and held it to the apple.

He did this for several other items on the cart.

"_Good thing I managed to build this scanner! Not only does it detect what something is made of, food or otherwise, but it also picks up other substances like poison and identifies unknown objects!_" He thought.

"Sadly, I do not have much of a sugar tooth." Alejandro said.

"Really?" Cody raised an eyebrow.

"And as my dear mama always says, I am sweet enough already."

"_She wouldn't say that if she knew what you were doing..._" Cody thought.

"And I would rather not pollute my system with chemicals and dyes." Alejandro said.

"_You're pretty polluted otherwise. Mentally for example. So why bother?_" Cody thought.

"So since I don't eat them, I think you should enjoy them." Alejandro said.

"_All the sweets are safe though, so why not enjoy them?_" Cody thought before beginning to gobble up the sweet treats before him.

* * *

Sierra had dragged Heather and Izzy down to the cargo hold and was explaining the situation to them.

"_NO way! _You're the Nadiri princess?" Izzy gasped in surprise. Heather had a stunned look on her face.

"Yep!" Sierra pulled a ring of gold, with a small sun made of citrine embedded in the centre from her pocket, held it up for a moment and slipped it onto her finger. _Nadir's sceptre-ring..._

"How come you didn't tell us before?" Heather asked.

"We had no reason to yet, but we do now! Cody would have been here too but he's up there with Ale-Jerkface..." Sierra got a dark look on her face.

"What is the reason then?" Izzy asked.

"Radcliffe has inside agents in this contest!" Sierra exclaimed.

"_**WHAT?**_"

"Yes, he does! Alejandro has been working for him this whole time! Not only is he a shadow master, but he also learnt a little mind control from his Uncle Julio and that was what was behind Gwen's elimination in China!" Sierra exclaimed.

"You mean he... hypnotized us?" Heather said in disgust.

"Looks like it..." Izzy said, equally disgusted.

"And Courtney back at Playa Des Losers 2 as well. Apparently he got to her and offered her powers so she could have a chance of defeating you!" Sierra said.

"Wow, Courtney's really gone over the edge, hasn't she?" Izzy shuddered.

"Like I've said before, she officially replaces you as being a perfect ten on the crazy scale!" Heather said, wide-eyed.

"And about Alejandro..." Sierra started.

"He's got to go!" Heather pounded her palm.

"Hold on." Sierra held up a hand.

"We have to keep on acting as if we don't know a thing about this!"

"So what do you mean...? Just let him stay?" Heather asked incredulously.

"Not at all! We just keep on acting like we would around each other if this situation wasn't what it is and then we turn around and eliminate him..." Sierra snapped her fingers. "Just like that!"

"An alliance of sorts, huh?" Izzy mused for a second. "I like it!"

"Wait, what about Gwen, Bridgette and Lindsay? Courtney's there with them now!" Heather exclaimed.

"Don't worry; there are people there with them too..." Sierra said.

* * *

At Playa Des Losers two young people, a male and a female were walking up to the gates.

The male was average height, had black ear-length hair and brown eyes. He wore a simple black T-Shirt, jeans and sneakers.

The female on the other hand was more on the tall side. She had a caramel skin tone, wild, curly black hair that just reached her shoulders and hazel eyes. She had a pair of golden-brown horn rimmed shades perched in her hair and was wearing huge gold hoop earrings, a purple spaghetti-strap top with a short-sleeved open black jacket over it, black knee-length jeans and black stiletto ankle boots.

"Well, we've finally arrived, haven't we, Kimmy?" The man gazed up at the building.

"This is going to be _real_ fun." The woman said sarcastically.

"Look at this way, Kimberly. It puts even more excitement into your life, right?" The man put his hand on her shoulder.

"You know Shane, that's true!" Kimberly brightened. "I get an excuse to come to Toronto _without __**Female Satan**_ after all!" Kimberly grinned.

"Surely Talia isn't that bad?" Shane raised an eyebrow.

"You've obviously never been on the receiving end of her pranks..." Kimberly said. "Now let's get inside."

They went straight down to the TV lounge where the contestants were watching and sat quietly in the back.

When they saw Courtney get up and walk off, their eyes followed her.

When Courtney returned a short while later, she noticed them looking at her.

"What are you looking at?" She snapped.

Everyone else who had been watching Heather, Izzy and Sierra in Economy Class turned to watch.

"Me? I don't know, but I certainly wasn't looking at you." Kimberly smiled- a taunting sort of smile that would make you want to punch whoever had it.

"_This is gonna be good._" Shane pulled a bag of popcorn out of his backpack and watched eagerly.

"Who is she?" Gwen asked.

Duncan shrugged. "I don't know, but if she's going to taunt Courtney like that, I may just like her!"

"Listen. You do _**not**_ want to mess with me." Courtney said, walking up to her.

"_Uh-oh..._" Shane ran for cover. It never ended well when people messed with his cousin. Usually for the other person seeing as Kimberly certainly wasn't the most pleasant person to begin with...

"That's nice. You also don't want to mess with me." Kimberly said casually, glancing at her nails.

This seemed to aggravate Courtney even more.

"I don't appreciate you staring like that." Courtney said in a chilling tone.

Everyone else shuddered.

"As a friend of mine, Jane would say, who'd want to stare at _your_ awful speckled mug?" Kimberly said.

This set things going in Gwen, Bridgette and Lindsay's minds.

"_Jane? Her name is Kimberly; she knows someone named Jane..._" Gwen thought.

"_Vesta's granddaughter's name is Jane and Kimberly awfully resembles..._" Bridgette thought.

"_Oh my gosh! Kimberly! Travis and Milah's daughter!_" Lindsay thought.

They looked at one another. "_And the guy she's with. Does that mean..._" They trailed off as they heard the sound of a slap.

Kimberly touched her cheek tenderly and looked at Courtney slowly.

"Oh _**HELL NO!**_" She yelled.

She tugged her earrings out of her ears.

"Wow. When a woman takes off her earrings like that, you know a fight's about to happen!" Leshawna commented.

"Shane, hold these." She tossed them at him.

"You really shouldn't challenge people you don't know, you know."

And with that, Kimberly delivered a sucker punch that literally sent Courtney spinning across the room.

The room burst out into cheers (Duncan the loudest!) as Kimberly dusted off her hands, went to reclaim her earrings and sat putting them on as if nothing had happened.

"The interns told me that Lindsay of all people managed to beat you in a fight. One would think you'd learn your lesson about starting fights by now with a track record as pathetic as that..." She said as Shane came to sit beside her.

Gwen, Bridgette and Lindsay decided to approach them.

"Excuse me, but aren't you..." Gwen fiddled with the Silver Star.

"Yep. Kimberly Bryan here. Daughter of Travis and Jamilah Bryan also known as Milah, granddaughter of Marissa Bryan and Aideen Robinson former Water and Fire Keepers."

"Do you always go around introducing yourself like that?" Shane asked. "Sheesh. Talk about long winded introductions! My name is Shane Jones. You don't know her but Anya is my mother. She's Aideen's oldest so, yeah. Aideen is my grandma too. Pleased to meet you three."

"Why haven't we seen you before?" Lindsay asked.

"Walk with us, won't you?" Shane led them out of the room. Kimberly followed, throwing hateful glances at Courtney who after glaring at Duncan who was still laughing and pointing at her turned to glare at her too.

Kimberly flipped her off.

* * *

"Well you all know about Radcliffe and previous tactics he has used to try and destroy the Keepers, right?" Shane said.

The three Keepers nodded.

"_Well..._" Kimberly paused. "He's taken it much farther this time."

"What do you mean?" Gwen asked.

"Radcliffe has inside agents in this contest." Shane said.

Gwen, Lindsay and Bridgette stopped in their tracks.

"Wha?" Bridgette froze.

"How?" Lindsay asked.

"Who?" Gwen asked.

"Alejandro in the game and Courtney here." Kimberly said.

"No way... She wouldn't!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"Yep. Apparently she wants revenge that badly that she agreed to become part of Radcliffe's team in exchange for powers of her own so she can destroy those she hates..." Kimberly threw a glance at Gwen.

"_Because of me..._" Gwen thought sadly.

"And Alejandro?" Bridgette asked.

"He is the one behind Gwen's elimination in China. There's a spy in Radcliffe's midst who tells us that he not only has shadow-based powers, but also learnt a few hypnotism tricks from his uncle Julio." Shane said.

Gwen clenched her fist.

"Wait, what about Heather and Izzy? They're there with him!" Lindsay squealed in fright.

"Don't worry about them. They're well taken care of." Kimberly said.

"We're here to help you three just in case something happens. We don't know what he could do! I'm posing as a simple student in search of information and Kimberly is pretending to just visit me." Shane explained.

"In the meantime, you all should get back and watch the episode. And whatever you do..." Kimberly raised an eyebrow.

"Don't let Courtney know we're onto her." Gwen nodded.

"Good." Shane and Kimberly gave them two thumbs off as they went to talk to the interns and get the hang of the place.

* * *

Sierra laid back on the bench in Loser Class on a bunch of pillows that she had inexplicably obtained (if you didn't know she had magic, that is!) talking to Heather and Izzy.

"So, what do you recommend?" Sierra asked.

Heather sighed. "I am NOT a therapist!"

"JUST PRETEND!" Sierra insisted.

"_**I**_ can give you some advice!" Izzy butted in.

"_**You**_ giving someone advice as a therapist? Hell, YOU need a therapist, Izzy!" Heather said to her.

"How is this supposed to do anything, anyway?" Heather asked.

"Just give me some advice. _Pleaaseeeeee?_" Sierra looked up at her with wide eyes.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"Marry somebody you don't have to trick into it, move out of crazytown and join the rest of us in the real world and LEAVE HEATHER ALONE! Is what I would have said." She sighed. "_But _with Alejandro in First undoing all my hard work on Cody, Mrs. Crazytown..." She paused. "Mrs. Crazytown _number two_, that is... and Mrs. Crazytown number one are my only chance! So... Do not judge me."

**Izzy: **She was sitting there arms folded and lips pouted. "Why doesn't Sierra trust my relationship advice? I'm just as good as giving at giving advice as Heather, heck even better! I've got my PhD in Psychology after all! Hey! I'm like the Canadian, female, redhead, teenage version of Dr. Phil! Maybe I can get my own TV show! Hear _that,_ Oprah Winfrey?"

**Chris: **He was laughing hysterically. "Izzy, getting her own TV show? HA! Listen, I know Oprah and she'd never help that psycho get a show..." His phone started ringing. "Hello?" He held it far from his ear as the person on the other end began screaming and shouting loudly at him. He hung up.

"Okay, _**okay!**_ So maybe I don't know Oprah! Point is, she'd never give Izzy of all people a show!"

* * *

"You wanna know what I really think?" Heather asked.

"Yes. Maybe. No. Yes. Maybe?" Sierra said.

"It is time for you to start trusting the girls in your life!" Heather said.

"How will that save my relationship?" Sierra asked.

"Boyfriends come and go, but girlfriends are forever." Heather said.

"It's true you know!" Izzy exclaimed. "Like they say! Chicks before d-"

"We get the idea, Izzy!" Heather cut her off.

"Anyway, we are going to get Alejandro out of the game. You, me and Psycho over there." She said, thumbing Izzy over her shoulder who was now preening herself like a cat.

"Jeez, I wonder how cats do this so easily! This is hard!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Okay then..." Heather said weirded out.

"Oh please. As if you want Alejandro gone!" Sierra waved her hand dismissively.

Heather froze.

"Yes, I DO want him gone!" Heather insisted.

"Let's face it, Heather, you totally like him!" Izzy teased.

"DO NOT!" Heather insisted.

"You're so into him, his kidneys are getting crowded!" Sierra said.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **"Between me and Cody-wody and the Heather and Alejandro lovefest, this plane is starting to feel like one huge double date in a can! Well, except for Izzy, she's like an extra wheel. And Chef and Chris. Chef isn't really Chris' type. Even though some shippers might argue otherwise, just like they do for _Noah and Cody..._" She got a menacing look on her face at the last part.

* * *

Chef and Chris were in the cockpit as Chris made an announcement to the contestants to prepare for landing.

"_I hate this backwards piece of crap that they call a plane! This is bad even by prehistoric standards! They want planes; they should see the ones that Zenith had..._" Chef thought.

"Come on; just let me fly it once! What can it hurt?" Chris whined- for the 50 millionth time that day. Or at least so it seemed to Chef. Being Immortal did wonders for your patience living forever and all, but Chris was starting to test his...

"NO _FOOL!_ Do you want to crash this plane and kill us all?" Chef asked. "_Or rather, everyone except me?_" He thought.

"It's technically my plane you know." Chris said.

"Which you don't know how to fly!" Chef exclaimed.

Chris began reaching for the controls and as he did, Chef slapped his hands away.

As a result, since no one was paying any attention to the controls, the plane knocked over a stone head on what seemed to be a tropical island below them.

* * *

Alejandro and Heather got off the plane and walked over to the knocked over stone head.

"Another piece of world heritage destroyed." Alejandro commented. "_With all the damage this show's done so far, I'm surprised world governments haven't sued it yet!_"

"That's not the _**ONLY**_ chiselled rock that's gonna get destroyed today!" Heather said.

"Chiselled, you say?"

Nearby, Izzy, Sierra and Cody stood watching the two.

Cody had carried a basket of candy with him and was munching a few.

"_Did you girls get the news about Alejandro and Courtney?_" Gwen asked Izzy.

"_Yep. We're fine. What you see is just an act._" Izzy replied.

"_Good._" Gwen said.

"_I'm not so sure about that..._" Bridgette said.

"_What do you mean?_" Heather asked, butting into the conversation.

"_I think you might know what I mean Heather. Let's just leave it at that for now._" Bridgette said.

The other Keepers looked puzzled at this but left it at that.

"_Who's with you girls? Kimberly and Shane said that someone was with you just in case Alejandro tried anything!_" Lindsay said.

"_Kimberly and Shane?_" Heather asked puzzled.

"_Kimberly is Travis and Milah's oldest daughter and Shane is Aideen's oldest grandchild from another daughter. Since they're the oldest of the Keepers' grandchildren, they volunteered to come over here, just in case!_" Gwen explained.

"_Oh. This jerkass with the bad hairdo is calling us to do the challenge. Talk to you all later!_" Heather said, cutting off the Link.

* * *

All five contestants burst out laughing when they saw Chris' costume- something that looked like a grass skirt with a split on each side, sandals and his legs were covered in something they couldn't recognise- fur possibly- up to his knees. His chest was bare with some weird white markings on it and he wore a stone necklace with bone in it.

Perched on top of his head was a large, multi coloured headdress.

"And I thought the last one was bad enough, but this one takes the cake!" Heather said.

"No crazy outfit will hide your ugliness Chris!" Izzy cackled.

"You have to admit, that getup really doesn't suit you!" Alejandro said.

"Chris, maybe you should change..." Cody said.

"Seriously that outfit makes you look-" Sierra was cut off by Chris.

"ENOUGH ALREADY!" Chris yelled.

Chef came along just then and when he saw Chris and his ridiculous outfit, he burst out into laughter, which of course triggered off even more laughter in the others.

"OKAY OKAY! ENOUGH!" Chris yelled.

Everyone finally became quiet.

"Welcome to Easter Island, aka Rapanui. This place is _old._ These dudes were carved so long ago no one even remembers why anymore!" Chris said.

"_Oh really?_" Deanna asked.

"_What do you know about the Easter Island heads?_" Heather asked.

"_Just that a certain Earth Keeper named Tarija made them..._" Deanna smirked.

"_Really? When?_" Heather asked.

"_She was the third Earth Keeper and was from somewhere around there, I believe._" Deanna said.

"Today you our final five are going on a highly traditional Easter Island egg hunt. You know, the old-fashioned eggs that come from birds, the flying things with feathers and talons and vicious kill-you-in-a-second beaks..." Chris continued.

Everyone except Izzy went wide-eyed at this. She was actually fiddling with a stone in her hand and when she was bored with it, threw it at the host whom it hit in the head.

"OW! Izzy what's wrong with you?" Chris whined.

The contestants looked at one another.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **"Is he REALLY asking that?"

**Alejandro:** "No one may ever know how that loon's mind works..."

**Sierra:** "Do we even _WANT_ to know what's wrong with Izzy?"

**Cody:** "Would even Dr. Phil be able to help _that_ cuckoolander?"

**Izzy: **"Nothing's wrong with me! Why would Chris even think that? Admit it! Wouldn't you like to throw a rock at his head too?"

* * *

"Anyway..." Chris rubbed his head where the stone had hit and winced.

"Traditional Rapanui headdresses. Wear them with pride, chickens!" Chris threw a bunch of smaller headdresses to the contestants. Alejandro's was blue, Cody's was purple, Sierra's was green and Heather's was pink.

Izzy caught a bright yellow one and examined it. "Hey! This shade will make me look like Big Bird's cousin or something!" She pouted.

"Deal with it." Chris laughed.

Izzy growled, picked up another rock and threw it at him, this time knocking him over.

* * *

"Hidden in these head things are a bunch of coloured eggs that match the colour of your... headthings." Chris said, leading them to another area.

"Wow Chris. You really did your research..." Heather remarked sarcastically.

"Your challenge is to find three eggs in your colour, then make a break for the massive underground cavern system and book it all the way to the highest point on the island. Reach the top with all three eggs to begin the second part of today's challenge." Chris explained.

"What happens if we drop an egg?" Heather asked.

"You'll have to come all the way back here for a replacement." Chris said.

Alejandro raised his hand.

"And _no, _you cannot take a backup egg."

Alejandro narrowed his eyes at him. "_How the hell did he know I was about to ask that?_" He wondered.

"First to the top gets a big advantage in part 2. Now scramble!" Chris exclaimed.

The contestants ran off.

"Ha ha, _scramble. _Their challenge focuses on eggs. Get it? Scrambled eggs?" He said to Chef who had come to stand beside him.

Chef rolled his eyes.

* * *

"These look disturbingly familiar..." Alejandro said, gazing up at the stone heads.

Sierra gazed around. "It's everyone who's been voted out!"

Alejandro leapt on top of the Lindsay head and began climbing.

Sierra reached up towards Ezekiel's nose and rummaged in it of the egg.

"_It's not even his real nose, but MAN this is disgusting!_" She thought as she pulled out a blue egg.

"Got one!" She held it up.

Alejandro glanced at her. "Blue's my colour! Thank you Sierra!"

Sierra narrowed her eyes at him before throwing the egg at him.

He swung himself upward to avoid being hit and it smashed on Lindsay's head.

"Oops! I guess that's what happens when you're a home wrecking husband stealer and destroyer of dreams!" Sierra said. "_Among other things..._" She thought viciously.

Alejandro glared. "I will keep that in mind when I locate one of your eggs!" He said.

Meanwhile, Heather was over at Courtney's head and managed to locate one of her eggs.

"Who knew Courtney could actually be useful for something?" She said in surprise, holding it up. "Who would've thought?"

"I wish I could say the same of Lindsay..." Alejandro said. "Oh wait, is that-" He rummaged in Lindsay's ear and pulled out nothing. "Nothing but air..." He said. "_How ironic..._" He thought.

Cody gazed up at the Duncan statue with utter loathing.

"Gwen stealer!" He exclaimed, kicking the statue.

A purple egg drooped out of its nose and he dove forward to catch it.

"Sweet!" He exclaimed.

Izzy was climbing up Bridgette's statue singing.

"_JUST GONNA STAND THERE AND WATCH ME BURN!_" She sang rather loudly (and off key!).

Everyone turned to look at her weirdly.

"What?" Izzy asked as she found a yellow egg in Bridgette's ponytail clip and leapt off.

"Seriously, what's wrong with you people?" She asked as they continued to stare.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy:** "Everyone keeps looking me today like I'm some sort of weirdo! Seriously, all I did was sing a song!"

* * *

Sierra was next to find an egg- in Harold's ear.

"Yay! One for me! Now I just need something to carry it in..." Sierra glance over at a large clump of grass nearby and before anyone could react, she had somehow made a basket to put her egg in.

She found another one of hers in Tyler's head and squealed. "Another one! And there's more!" She found a purple egg and squealed again, running over to Cody to give it to him.

"CODY!"

Cody was about to climb Duncan's head to see if there were more eggs when he heard the shout and looked around.

Sierra placed the egg gently in his basket.

"Really? Thanks!" He said in surprise.

Sierra shrugged. "Of course! Anything for my hubby-wubby teddy-weddy bear..." She pinched his cheek.

Cody shuddered. "_I will never get used to this. EVER._" He thought.

* * *

Courtney had decided to stop watching the episode and go up to her room. Something was really bothering her.

"_Who is Kimberly? And Shane? How come I have never seen them before?_" She pondered.

She opened up her laptop and turned it on.

"_Why do they suddenly show up as interns when the show is almost over anyway?_" She thought.

"_I can't really do much without last names though... Is it worth contacting Radcliffe for?_" She fiddled with her necklace.

"No. It's not worth it." She said aloud. "What if it's not something to worry about?" She rummaged through her drawer for the Liquid Masquerade and took a sip, scrunching up her face as she did.

"_ACK! The taste never gets better at all..._" She shuddered and went back to her laptop browsing a few random sites, bored.

* * *

Back at Rapanui, Alejandro was walking around idly, juggling all three of his eggs.

"Let me guess. Your second cousin twice removed is a clown?" Cody asked sarcastically.

"No. I was in Cirque Du Monet's all child show Infantile. That is quite the handy basket." Alejandro nodded towards it, which only held two of the three eggs that Cody was supposed to find.

"_And I'm not sharing it!_" Cody thought.

"CODY! FAMILY MEETING, RIGHT NOW!" Sierra shouted dragging him away.

"What is it, Sierra?" He asked.

"First off, here. I found your third egg." Sierra placed it firmly in the basket alongside the other two.

"And second, we're going back to my home world after this." She whispered

"When did you get the message?" Cody whispered back.

"A message appeared in my magic diary a few minutes ago..." Sierra said trailing off as she saw Alejandro looking weirdly at them.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"That's odd. Sierra isn't acting as crazy as she normally would and Cody seems less... afraid of her... _Why?_ I need to find out what's going on there..." He smirked.

* * *

Meanwhile, Chef was helping two interns to put back up the Easter Island head that the Jumbo Jet had knocked over. While Chef pulled on a rope that was tied around it, the two interns were pushing from the other side.

"_This is Chris of all Chrisdom, seeking Chef Hatchett, __**over!**_"

Chef glanced at his pocket and reached for the walkie-talkie in there, letting go of the rope in the process.

He realised this and grabbed hold of it with one hand before it could crush the interns.

"_Need no deaths on my watch!_" He thought.

"When you're done slacking, think you could give me a hand?" Chris asked.

"_I'll give you a foot too..._" Chef muttered.

"_I heard that!_" Chris snapped.

"_Who the hell cares?_" Chef muttered.

"_I heard that too!_"

Chef rolled his eyes.

* * *

Meanwhile, Izzy had found all three of her eggs, carrying them in the basket that Sierra had made for her earlier and was proceeding through the tunnel humming happily.

"_This challenge was actually pretty fun!_" She thought. "_Egg hunts? Really? Has he run out of ideas?_"

She soon heard a rumbling noise.

"What is that?" She wondered out loud.

She soon got her answer as a giant boulder roared towards her.

"Oh CRAP!" Izzy went wide-eyed and quickly dodged out of the way.

Izzy, still wide-eyed went back out into the path after making sure everything was clear. When she saw that it was, she continued on, with a pissed off look on her face.

"ONE OF THESE DAYS I WILL _**KILL**_THAT MAN!" She roared.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Izzy: **She was holding a pen and notepad, writing. "I am going to find a way to kill Chris with an egg for having to go through that stupid tunnel!" She held one up. "Perfectly karmic death to me! Now how do I go about making these things unbreakable? Maybe I could hard-boil it and then cover it in hot lava? Nah. Maybe I should cover it in hot metal! Nah, that wouldn't work either..."

* * *

As Izzy walked, she heard voices behind her.

"I hate this stupid cave, I do, I do, I really do!" Heather complained.

"And so do I. Sometimes I really wonder if it was worth it to come-" Sierra stopped herself before she said anything she shouldn't.

Izzy cackled mischievously and hid in a crack in the cave walls as they passed.

As soon as they did, she jumped out from behind them and put on her creepiest voice.

"**Hello my friends..."**

Sierra and Heather screamed.

"IZZY!"

"What? Can't I say hello to my new _frieeeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnddddds?_" Izzy put an arm around both of them, both of whom were looking at her weirdly.

"No. We are not friends, you nutcase!" Heather snapped.

"I am NOT a nutcase!" Izzy exclaimed. "Do you see any nuts anywhere?"

"Okay, you've seriously just won a one way trip to the nuthouse with a luxury solitary padded cell and a designer straightjacket..." Heather said, inching slowly away.

"Really?" Izzy said excitedly. "When do I leave?" She was jumping up and down excitedly.

"Um, Izzy, do you really think jumping up and down like that is a good idea in this rather unstable..." Sierra trailed off as they heard a loud rumbling noise.

"Is that..." Izzy trailed off.

"Another boulder, yes!" Heather snatched them out of the way before it could squash them.

"That was a close one..." Izzy said.

"Too close!" Sierra said, wide-eyed. "That thing almost squashed the eggs!" She held her basket close to her protectively.

Heather raised an eyebrow at her, weirded out at her expression. "_Where the hell are all these boulders coming from anyway?_" She wondered.

* * *

Somewhere above them at the exit of the tunnel, Chris and Chef stood laughing.

"Whoo! That was hilarious!" Chef laughed in spite of himself.

"Agreed. That was awesome man! Did you see the looks on their faces? Priceless!" Chris laughed so hard that he began to cry.

"Hey dude, why don't you send some more down there?" Chris suggested.

Chef grew a mischievous smirk on his face before hauling Chris up by his necklace and throwing him down there, the host screaming all the way.

"But doing stuff like this to you will _always_ be more fun..." Chef chuckled as he sent another boulder down.

* * *

"_These tunnels are almost as dark as a night with no moon..."_ Alejandro thought as he walked through the tunnels alone.

"_Oh well. It will all be worth it when I beat Heather..._" He smirked as he juggled his eggs idly.

_Rumble... rumble... rumble..._

"What was that?" He asked, startled as the noise he was hearing grew louder.

He whipped around to see the biggest boulder he had ever seen in his life rolling straight at him.

"_***Spanish Censored*!"**_

He didn't even have time to move before it ran him over.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"When I win the million dollars, remind me to use it to build a Canadian Alcatraz just for Chris..."

* * *

"_**AAH!"**_

Chris was still rolling down the tunnel that Chef had thrown him down, shrieking like a little girl the whole time. He was getting bruises and scratches too, and that did not help.

"Ouch, my face! _MY BEAUTIFUL FACE!_ Eee!" He screamed at an even higher pitch than he did before as he slammed into a wall. "_Ouch..._" He wailed.

On the other side of that wall, Cody stood listening. "Sounds like Chris took a tumble!" He chuckled.

"_I totally wish I could see that!"_ He thought.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chris: **"That fall was embarrassing... I hope it gets edited out on the DVD..."

**Chef: **"I talked to the producers. They ain't editing it out! In fact, it's going to be in the top ten most hilarious injuries section in the special features!" He chuckled. "I'm ordering my copy in advance!"

* * *

"_Now I have to go back for more eggs..."_ Alejandro thought. _"Great. Just great."_

Sierra, Heather and Izzy ducked into a hole in the ground as a giant boulder rolled over them and popped up.

Heather began laughing as she saw Alejandro running past, spattered all over with egg and lots of bruises and scratches covering him from head to toe.

"Awww, did the little-bitty-baby lose his wee little eggs and has to get more?" She taunted him.

"The Latin Liar lost all his eggs and has to go get more! Hahahahaha!" Izzy laughed a laugh that any evil overlord would be proud of.

Alejandro glared at them and said something in Spanish which made Sierra go as wide-eyed as the two Keepers did when they translated for her.

One of Sierra's eggs suddenly leapt out of her basket and Heather caught it.

"Keep your eggs under control, Sierra! This one almost fell out!" Heather exclaimed, putting it back in.

"Technically, it DID fall out- you just caught it Heather..." Izzy pointed out.

"_NOT NECESSARY, IZZY!" _Heather thought, glaring at her physically.

"_HEY! DON'T YOU YELL AT ME!" _Izzy snapped back.

"_ENOUGH WITH THE YELLING ALREADY!"_ Gwen yelled.

"_Isn't that bit hypocritical of you, Gwen? I mean, you just added to the yelling..."_ Bridgette thought.

"_Sorry..."_

"Maybe we should move on…" Sierra suggested.

"Good idea."

"Yep, we should."

* * *

Alejandro was muttering to himself as he climbed up Owen's head in search of more eggs.

"Great! A piece of toast…" He threw out a burnt piece. "… a jar of grape jelly…" Alejandro shuddered as he remembered watching _I Triple Dog Dare You! "…sausage..." He threw that aside as well. _"…and a coconut? You useless lump! You still torture me with your… uselessness!" He kicked the statue which somehow actually managed to emit a large, loud belch which knocked him off his feet and slammed him into the ground.

"_***CENSORED!*" **_He roared.

An egg dropped on his head and rolled off into his hands. His mood immediately changed as he smirked.

"_Bueno…" _He chuckled mischievously as he clutched the egg to his face with quite the creepy expression on his face.

* * *

"Okay, that expression _really _creeps me the hell out…" Gwen shuddered as she watched.

Everyone else in the room, even Eva, nodded in agreement.

"For real." Kimberly commented to Shane who had just come back in.

"I've got quite a bit of information now for school, enough to study and hopefully maintain my 4.0 GPA and thus my full scholarship…" Shane said.

"Don't give a rat's ass, Shaney!" Kimberly said, waving him off.

Shane glared. "One, don't call me that and two why are you always so mean?" He raised an eyebrow.

"It amuses me!" Kimberly shrugged. "Messing with people is fun!" She smiled sweetly.

Shane deadpanned.

"Wait a minute- I just noticed- where is Courtney? She's disappeared!" Kimberly swept her arm across the room and as Shane followed it, he saw his cousin was right- no Courtney in sight.

"We need to find out where she is. If only Rika were here…" Shane said.

"I know, right? Best psychic tracker I know!" Kimberly exclaimed. "And she knows how I feel about annoying younger siblings- Hiroshi and Hitoshi are like the Japanese-Canadian Weasley twins!"

She sighed.

"Gonna have to do this the old-fashioned way then…" She suggested.

"And what would that be?" Shane asked.

Kimberly smirked- not unlike the creepy smirk Alejandro had before.

Shane shuddered.

* * *

"You are almost as bad as your sister. You know that?" Shane said.

"But this time, I'm doing it for a good reason. Hack into the phone line and send the Keepers a text telling them to come up here, won't you?" She said nonchalantly as she searched Courtney's empty room. "I love having a technopath cousin…"

Shane's finger changed into something resembling a telephone plug and he put it in the telephone socket.

Minutes later, Gwen, Lindsay and Bridgette were up there.

"What's the deal?" Gwen asked.

"Courtney has disappeared. She probably went to Radcliffe so we figured while she was gone, why not search her room and see if we could dig up some dirt on the bastard?" Kimberly shrugged as she put her hand on Courtney's dresser drawer- and pulled it back sharply.

"Ouch!" She clutched her hand and shook it. "That stung!"

Shane moved forward to touch it and he pulled back his hand just as sharply.

"There's a jinx on that drawer!" He exclaimed.

"But why?" Lindsay asked, puzzled.

"It must be something really important in there…" Gwen said.

"Like what?" Bridgette asked, fiddled nervously with the bracelet that Magalie had given her before.

"Can we penetrate the spell?" Gwen asked.

"I might- but my magic would probably leave traces and then they'd be able to tell who was up here- not good…" Kimberly said.

"So where does that leave us?" Lindsay asked.

"Perhaps if _you_ did it Gwen?" Shane suggested. "You are more powerful than any of us- if anyone is able to do it without leaving a trace, it should be you!"

"The spell words are _vicissim maledictione._" Kimberly said. "Try it!"

Gwen followed her instructions and a clear shield with purple lightning-like streaks appeared around the drawer and disappeared.

They were all silent as Gwen hand went towards the knob to pull it open.

She had almost touched it when Gwen had a vision.

"CRAP! Courtney is coming back!" She exclaimed.

"Go on, go! I'll put the spell back on!" Gwen ran them out of the room as she put back on the spell and dashed out behind them.

She had no sooner shut the door than Courtney had returned.

"Something's off…" She whispered in an eerie tone.

But she couldn't tell what…

* * *

Izzy was juggling her eggs and humming happily.

"I'm singing in a cave, I'm singing in a cave_!_" Heather and Sierra covered their ears.

"I'll wipe away all of your tears!"

"_More like cause them…"_ Heather muttered.

One of Sierra's eggs bolted out of the basket.

"Oh dear…" Sierra looked up at it.

The egg began to fall.

"HOLD THESE!" She handed Heather the other eggs and dove to catch the egg, barely catching it.

The egg began to shake.

"Oh, look! It's hatching!"

Izzy, who was still singing rather loudly, took no notice of it.

Heather on the other hand was eyeing it wearily.

It hatched- producing a bird oddly resembling Cody.

"Oh look, it's Cody Junior!" Sierra cooed, standing up, holding him close to her.

"He's so adorable!" She snuggled him close.

"Obviously mileage varies there…" Heather muttered.

The bird eyed Izzy over Sierra's shoulder and even put its wings over where its ears might have been, grimacing.

After less than five seconds, Cody Jr. apparently decided that he wasn't going to tolerate Izzy's poor excuse for singing and flew at her suddenly.

"Cody Junior! NO!" Sierra shrieked as he attacked Izzy.

"You blasted bird!" Izzy shrieked, trying to swat it away with no success as it kept dive-bombing her.

"Stop it!" Sierra exclaimed.

"Why? He's just avenging our eardrums…" Heather shrugged.

By now, it had erupted into an all-out brawl, with clouds of dust flying everywhere and Izzy was shrieking and snarling.

"GET OFF ME YOU _***CENSOREDING* **_bird!" Izzy roared.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chef: **"I don't blame that creature for not liking her singing!" He shuddered.

**Izzy:** She looked very grumpy, in addition to having scratches and dirt all over her body, and her hair was messy, with a few feathers in it. "Anybody know any recipes for bird stew?" She grumbled.

Sierra suddenly burst in with Cody Junior on her head, startling her.

**Sierra: **"Don't. You. _Dare…_" Sierra glared

**Izzy:** "GET OUT OF MY CONFESSIONAL!"

**Sierra: **"NO!"

**Izzy:** "THEN PREPARE TO FACE THE CONSEQUENCES!"

They then began to slap fight as Cody Jr. face-winged and flew out, rolling his birdy eyes.

**Heather:** "Those two ought to be committed to the loony bin. With immediate effect!"

* * *

Heather watched, weirded out as Izzy finally managed to side-sweep the bird into the nearby wall.

Sierra growled and pouted, but said nothing.

The bird bounced back and instead of flying back to Sierra, it went to Heather.

"Get off me, you blasted bird!" Heather shooed it off.

"Can you at last try to control your… your… bird child?" She asked, annoyed.

"I am! I'm giving him time outs, I've taken away privileges… I've also…" Sierra was cut off by a shrieking Cody and Chris running past them.

"RUN AWAY!" They shouted.

"BOULDER!" Heather shrieked as it came rumbling down towards them.

They all ran pell-mell screaming.

"AAH! Where's Alejandro anyway?" Heather asked as they ran.

"Who gives a- uh-oh…" Izzy stopped in her tracks as she exited the cave and saw Alejandro with his eggs, juggling them with a smirk on his face.

"What took you guys so long?" He asked.

Izzy, Sierra, Heather and Cody stood there twitching, all ignoring Chris being barrelled into the air by the boulder behind them and face planting on the ground, right beside Chef, who looked annoyed.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Cody: **"But… but… HOW? He had to go back for more eggs! How, _how_ did he manage to pull that off?"

**Heather:** She glared at the camera. "I want to know how he managed to pull that off without cheating!" She paused. "Then again, he probably DID cheat somehow…"

**Alejandro: **"Let's just say I have my ways of doing things…" He chucked.

* * *

"Um, what do I do with this?" Alejandro held up a catcher's mask. "I don't have to play baseball, do I?"

"Thankfully no. Nor any other sort of sport which requires a ball or ball-like object to be hit…" Chris winced at the memory of the first challenge in African Lying Safari where the plums had hit him in the- well, you know where.

"All you have to do is climb up to that bird's nest…" He pointed upwards. "…and give back the eggs you have in your possession in the order in which you came out- Alejandro first, Izzy second, Cody third, Sierra fourth and Heather last. Whoever manages to get all three eggs in first wins. Good luck trying to get past the angry Condor bird…" He chuckled as the giant bird flew overhead screeching.

They all looked up at it and gulped.

Alejandro put on his mask.

"_Whatever you do, don't let him win this!"_ Deanna instructed.

"_Never."_ Heather replied.

"Good luck with that you guys. I hear that Condors gouge out the eyeballs of predators." Alejandro said.

"Good luck keeping yours then!" Heather said in a fake cheery voice, waving him off, which annoyed him.

Alejandro clutched his eggs close to him and attempted to begin the long climb when Chris ahem-ed.

"WHAT NOW?"

"_Music time!" _Chris sang as the chime to indicate the start of a song went off.

As Alejandro went up, a wonderful, _awful_ idea occurred to Heather.

She laughed on the inside as she focused on the ground around them as it began to shake.

Alejandro was just about to put in his egg in when the ground shook, interrupting his song.

"What- AHHH!" He screamed as he fell to the ground.

"_Good one!"_ Deanna cheered.

"_Thanks."_ Heather replied, smirking.

Izzy went up and managed to put in the first egg, but the bird swooped down around her and knocked her off the nest with its giant wing.

"Rats!" Izzy hit the ground with her fist.

Cody went next and somehow managed to climb and eat a chocolate bar at the same time. The Condor flew at him and swiped the chocolate bar right out of his hand, knocking him off balance and into the ground where all of his eggs splattered in his face.

Sierra went up and managed to put two of her eggs in before the bird had a go at her. She had almost put her third egg in when Cody Jr. flew off her head and went straight for Heather.

"NO! Not _her!_" Sierra shrieked as she fell to the ground.

Heather went up and as she was about to put in her third egg, the Condor came dangerously close to her.

Everyone else gasped.

She ducked as it came back and put in her third egg as Cody Jr. flew off to follow it.

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes, YES!" Heather climbed into the nest and jumped up and down, cheering.

"Congratulations Heather! You're in the final four!" Chris called up.

"Of course! I-" Heather sensed a movement behind her and ducked just in time for the Condor to smack into one of the stone heads instead of her, knocking it over, which in turn caused a domino effect with the other statues, which everyone watched with blank faces.

* * *

Heather, Izzy, Cody and Sierra were in the cargo hold in a huddle as they talked. They did not realise however, that Ezekiel was lurking in the shadows, watching them.

"Alejandro is so gone!" Izzy cheered.

"I know, right!" Heather smiled with glee.

"And after this, we're going to my home planet! I'm so excited! I've mastered teleporting people from separate locations so I can teleport the others at Playa Des Losers 2 to Nadir at the same time I teleport us!" Sierra smiled.

Heather looked puzzled at this. "So why didn't Hasim ever do that?" She asked.

Sierra shrugged. "Dude marches to his own beat! How would I know?"

"Well let's get to it! Alejandro won't know what's hit him!" Heather rubbed her hands together and cackled.

Izzy watched, her, looking slightly creeped out. "Okay, you're weird…"

Heather looked back at her incredulously as they left the cargo hold.

* * *

The five remaining contestants sat in the area where results were announced waiting for Chris to arrive to give his usual pre-voting speech.

"Okay guys and gals, boy do I have a surprise for you!" Chris grinned.

Izzy and Heather and Cody and Sierra looked at one another nervously. Alejandro perked up.

"You all know that Heather won Immunity and as a result cannot be eliminated and automatically goes to First Class. However, today we have only a _teeny-weenie-itsy-bitsy-tiny-little…_"

"OKAY! WE GET THE POINT, _***CENSORED***_!" Izzy roared, shaking a fist.

"Okay, sheesh! Anyway, we had a poll on the Total Drama site asking who they would give immunity to in this challenge if they could. The results were fun."

"_Uh-oh…"_ Cody thought.

"And it seems as if the fans like their… _antagonists,_ quite a lot…" Chris' grin became even huger.

"_I hope this isn't going where I think it is…"_ Heather thought.

"So… they voted for our favourite Spanish dude Alejandro to receive immunity today in addition to Heather!"

Everyone else's jaws dropped while Alejandro simply smiled.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather:** Her eyes flashed angrily. "What an ass pull!"

**Izzy: **"You'd better hope I don't catch up with you, online voters!" She shook a fist.

* * *

"So if you all wanted to vote for him, you're gonna have to find someone else to vote for instead." Chris chuckled.

The contestants burst out in an angry uproar.

"Well, it looks like I-" Alejandro started to speak but was cut off by Heather standing up to backhand him.

Back in the cargo hold…

"So who do we go for now?" Sierra asked.

"I'll go!" Cody volunteered.

"NO!" Sierra wailed.

Izzy put a hand on her shoulder.

"I'll go." She said.

"What?" Everyone turned to look at her in surprise.

"I said, I'll go!" Izzy insisted.

"Are you sure?" Cody asked.

"I don't think I ever really wanted to win anyway." Izzy shrugged. "I had lots of fun here and that's what I really wanted!"

Heather looked as if she couldn't understand what she just said. "What's the point of entering a competition if it's not to win?"

"You wouldn't understand, 'Miss I'm Not Here To Make Friends'!" Izzy said.

Heather looked appalled.

"Well, as long as it isn't me…" Heather shrugged.

* * *

After Izzy's elimination which was actually non-eventful, she, Heather, Cody, and Sierra were standing on a flat area of land with the Jumbo Jet frozen in mid-air, right above them.

Sierra took off her ring and threw it up into the air where it transformed into a sceptre in a flash of golden light and caught it one hand.

She swept it broadly in mid-air, grinning as she finally got to show the Keepers her home world.

* * *

Keepers of the Elements, in case you haven't noticed, officially has its own TV Tropes page. HyperForce has also exceeded himself with drawing a promo poster for it! Check out his gallery and the trope page, links to which are on my profile!

In a future chapter, I will write about the Old Keepers' past. What would you like to know? Let me know!

Also, what do you think about Shane and Kimberly? They're only two of the Old Keepers' grandchildren and more will be introduced eventually!

_**-Review!**_


	26. Nutty Nadir

I edited some previous chapters so I'd advise you to go read them again because the next chapter will contain material relevant to those changes.

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"Here we are!" Sierra announced proudly. "You have just arrived in Lasiandra, Nadir!"

The first thought that occurred to any of them was that they had stepped into an episode of _The Jetsons._

As Gwen, Bridgette and Lindsay appeared next to them, they seemed to be thinking the same thing.

While the other cities they had seen were indeed futuristic by Earth's standards, Nadir was practically space-themed. There was basically no other way to describe it.

They themselves were standing on top of a large, floating circle shaped piece of metal.

"Wow. I wouldn't mind spending time here…" Izzy said in awe. The others nodded in agreement.

Sierra got out a cell phone and called someone.

Minutes later, a white flying limousine pulled up next to them. It had wings like a jet and two rocket-like devices on either side of the back.

"Well since you're here, it's only right that you experience us in style!" Sierra grinned.

"I quite agree." Heather said, being the first to get in.

Cody, who had remained quiet all this time, merely made sure as to get a seat as far away from Sierra as he possibly could.

"And who's our driver today?" Bridgette quizzed, looking at the man dressed in a gold and black driver's uniform and black shades.

"This is Martin, one of the best defensive drivers this planet has!" Sierra said.

"Um, Sierra, why would you need a defensive driver for this?" Gwen asked hesitantly.

Cody practically looked as if he knew the answer because his face was full of fear.

"You'd best buckle up and hold on…" Martin advised.

They did so with worried looks on their faces.

"AND PREPARE FOR A WILD RIDE! WOO-HOO!" Martin revved up the engine and sped off.

When he did, everyone's hair was whipping around behind them and his hat nearly fell off.

"OH CRAP!" Gwen exclaimed, clutching to the sides of her seat.

"OH YEAH!" Izzy and Sierra yelled in unison.

"OH NO!" Heather yelled.

Bridgette glanced over the side of the flying, speeding limo and saw everything below her pass in a rapid blur.

She pulled her head back in, looking slightly green.

"When will it end?" Lindsay wailed.

"I'd like to know that too!" Cody said.

"Oh, why are you worrying so much? This isn't even top speed!" Sierra waved them off.

"WHAT?"

The vehicle kicked into even higher gear, making them scream even louder and Bridgette actually did lose her lunch at one point.

It did several mid-air turns as if it were a roller coaster and sped on further before coming to a sudden stop.

"THIS IS FUN!" Izzy yelled.

"YOU SAID IT!" Sierra yelled back.

When the flying vehicle came to a sudden stop, everyone except Izzy, Sierra and of course, Martin was green in the face.

"That was FUN! Can we do it again?" Izzy asked, cheering.

"NO!" Cody, Gwen, Heather, Lindsay and Bridgette yelled in unison.

"Don't worry about that- at least for now…" Sierra said.

"Do you always allow the drivers to drive you like that?" Cody asked.

"Sure, why not? It's fun, isn't it?" Sierra shrugged.

Cody, Heather, Gwen, Lindsay and Bridgette looked at one another incredulously.

Gwen shook it off first. "So, where are we anyway?" She glanced through the window.

They were on a large stretch of metal with a glass-lined archway connected to a larger building. The building had large, random spheres of glass and spires made of metal on the roof.

People were on either side of the archway, which was being guarded by large, muscular men carrying large guns and some women who definitely looked like people who you wouldn't want to mess with, also carrying large weapons.

"This, my friends is my home- the Nadiri royal palace." Sierra said.

And with that, Martin got out of the car, opened the door and let them all out.

"Not bad, Sierra. Not bad!" Cody said in admiration, looking around at all the high-tech technology. "I've never been to Nadir myself either!"

"Say Sierra, since you're from Nadir, how is it that you've grown to be such a big fan of Total Drama anyway? I didn't get the impression that Earth shows aired here- or in any of the other 'magical planets'…" Heather said.

The others turned to her.

"Yeah… how do you know about us anyway?" Lindsay asked.

They reached a doorway and Martin opened it for them and ushered them inside.

"A simple matter really. My paternal grandparents are German. They moved here a long time ago and had my dad here, who eventually met my mother the Queen and here I am!" Sierra giggled.

"Anyway… My dad died when I was twelve. But before he did, he introduced me and mom to Earth culture and such and one of the places we visited was Canada. We liked it quite a bit so we visit there and Germany most often and once when I was in Canada I saw Total Drama's premier episode on television while just flipping through the channels. I've been a fan ever since!" Sierra squealed.

"Interesting story…" Bridgette commented.

"Anyway, if you will look to your right ladies…" Martin said.

Cody sighed.

They turned to look and saw a collection of inanimate portraits of several members of the royal family.

There was one with a younger Sierra, her mother who looked almost exactly like her, except for having dark brown hair and darker skin and her father who was white and had black hair and blue eyes.

There was also another picture of her and her mother when she was a little older and yet another one of Sierra alone. In that one, she wore a long, one-sleeved yellow dress with the skirt part having different layers in different shades of yellow, gold strappy high heels and a gold headband. She also held the sceptre, fully extended in her right hand.

"That one was done on my sixteenth birthday, when my mother passed the sceptre onto me." She explained of the last one.

They turned another corridor and came up to another door.

"Your majesty, this is where I must leave you." Martin said as he opened the door for them.

"Okay! Bye Martin!" She waved cheerfully as she led her guests inside.

* * *

"Mom!" Sierra exclaimed, running straight to her mother, who was at the front of the small crowd that was there.

They hugged.

"Sierra! My one and only princess! How are you?" Her mother said excitedly.

They jumped up and down squeeing.

"_Okay then…"_ Gwen thought.

"You guys! This is my mother, Queen Adara!" Sierra said.

"Pleased to meet you!" She said.

"And this is the boy that my dear daughter is so totally in love with!" Adara pulled Cody closer to her in a sort of one-armed bear hug.

It took all of the Keepers' willpower not to burst out laughing when they saw the crowd behind them making 'they're insane' gestures behind them.

Heather burst out snickering and at this, Sierra and her mother snapped around to look at the crowd behind them who somehow managed to look innocent again. The moment they turned away however, the crowd began making the signs again and even started snickering.

Adara finally released Cody, who was beginning to turn blue with the force of the hug.

"_So… Her mother is just as weird as she is…"_ Gwen thought.

"_Well, the weirdness had to come from somewhere…."_ Heather thought back.

"_True…" _Gwen thought.

There was silence for a moment before Lindsay burst in.

"_Wow, Gwen and Heather actually agree on something!"_

"_That might have been the weirdest thing I have ever seen all day…" _ Izzy added.

"_But how long will it last?"_ Bridgette wondered.

"Ah, this is going to be so much _fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun…_" Sierra and Adara rubbed their hands together in glee.

"I somehow don't think so. I'm getting out of here!" Cody exclaimed.

"What? Aren't you going to stay for the tour? You know you want to!" Sierra pouted.

"Actually, what I DO know is that I DON'T want to!" Cody insisted.

"Come on! You'll have lots of fun!" Sierra said.

She summoned a basket of chocolates.

"And you get to have this basket of chocolate! All sorts of different kinds from Earth and other planets alike…" She said in her most persuasive tone, waving it in front of his face. One could almost swear you heard creepy music in the background…

Cody's eyes went wide and his mouth started to water…

"Candy Apples, Gummy Candies of all sorts…" Adara added, summoning a basket of said items.

"Butterscotch, toffee, lollipops…" Sierra summoned another basket.

He shook his head to clear it.

"Sorry, I'm still outta here! Besides, there are some projects I want to work on while time is frozen on Earth. Like checking out the library here. I've been to the other planets' libraries, but never Nadir's…" He made a backpack appear out of nowhere and put it on.

Sierra's eyes widened.

"Wait a minute. That wouldn't happen to be…" She pointed at it.

"A jetpack, yes."

He turned to address the Keepers.

"Ladies, this is my latest creation. Well, technically it's not my creation as I didn't invent it but I did build this one! Anyway, it's my pride and joy." He tugged on the straps and two jet propellers emerged from the bottom while two handlebar-like things popped out from the sides and two bars emerged from the handlebars and met in the middle, in front of him, from which a small monitor-like device with a few buttons on it emerged.

"Woah, can you make one for me?" Izzy asked excitedly.

Cody raised an eyebrow. "You don't need one. You're a fairy, remember? You know, you can fly without a jetpack and all that?"

"Oh. Right." Izzy pouted.

"How does it work?" Lindsay asked.

"Well, for mine, there is a special four-digit code you must enter before it allows you to access its menu."

He entered the code and the screen lit up.

"Uh, maybe you should take that outside…" Adara piped up, looking from his jetpack to the ceiling (which was glass!) and back with worry.

"Good idea." Sierra led them back outside.

"Then once you do that, there's a GPS-like device in it that you can programme in order to take you where you want to go- or like me, you can use these-" He gripped the handlebars. "-to steer yourself." He smiled.

Gwen raised an eyebrow. "Wow. I'm impressed!"

"Of course! What would you expect from my wonderful husband …" Sierra got a creepy expression on her face and once again, one would swear you heard creepy music playing in the background…

Cody deadpanned.

"I am not going to even bother responding to that…" He sighed.

"Yep. That's probably a good idea…" Heather said.

"When we're all out of that stupid contest, there are plenty of things that I have rebuilt or invented myself that you can see. You're part of the magical world now, so you need to know about magical technology. I only wish MagiTech was still around. I heard that they worked wonders…" He sighed sadly.

"What's MagiTech?" Gwen asked.

Sierra stepped in. "They had operated for seventy years from 1890 to 1960." When she saw the surprised looks on the Keepers' faces, she broke off. "Um, you do remember that our technology is much more developed than that of Earth, right?"

"Oh yeah…"

"Anyway, they were a pretty strong technological company back then. Practically had a monopoly on everything. Anyway, the heads of MagiTech in 1960 were Melanie and Norville Renaldi. Everything was going well until for some reason, Melanie went over to the dark side." Sierra continued.

The Keepers gasped. "But why? Wouldn't have had everything they wanted?" Bridgette asked.

"You would think so, but apparently, Melanie thought otherwise." Cody muttered darkly. "She went over to Radcliffe's side. Fought down and dirty in that war- ask any of your predecessors. She was practically Radcliffe's second-in-command at the time and almost killed some of my family members who came from Earth to help..."

"At least until she was killed by the Keepers in the last few days of the war- one of the last on Radcliffe's side standing. Norville distanced himself from her when he saw her going dark but when she was killed, he took their young daughter Alana, all the company's money and disappeared. No one knows where they went or if the daughter is even still alive now…" Sierra said.

"Wow. That was one messed up family…" Heather shook her head.

"Yep." Cody fired up his jetpack.

"You're not still leaving, are you?" Sierra looked sad.

"For you and your creepy mother to wreck my nerves the entire time? A snowball's chance in hell of me letting _that_ happen!"

And with that, he took off.

"NO!" Sierra wailed, sinking to her knees.

The Keepers (even Izzy!) looked at one another strangely.

"CODY ANDERSON, YOU-WILL-BE-MINE!" She roared after him, shaking a fist.

She stood up. "Okay, let's get going, shall we?" She smiled.

Once again, the Keepers looked at one another strangely, creeped out by the sudden change in her mood.

* * *

"I'm BACK, EVERYBODY_!_" Sierra yelled.

"Oh great…" Several people muttered.

"_I wonder how these people feel about Sierra being their future queen…"_ Heather thought sarcastically.

"_I would probably move."_ Izzy replied.

"Now I get to show you all over!" Sierra led them to a large glass sphere.

"Get in!" She said as a hole large enough for them to go through appeared in it.

Her mother followed them and the hole sealed off and it began to rise.

"What an amazing view!" Bridgette said in awe as she looked down the other levels of the palace.

"It is, isn't it?" Sierra said dreamily.

Soon the sphere rose out of the main building and hovered high above it.

When they looked down, they could see the tops of the tallest buildings in the city.

It finally came to a stop that was so high above the city that they could barely see it.

"This is the AstroDome- or at least one of them anyway. You've seen what it does- so I don't need to explain it- _do I?_" Adara said, glancing at Lindsay.

"Sadly, it can only go up or down- so I can't take you on a sky tour- unless you want to fly in the limo again…" Sierra said.

"NO!" Four of the Keepers yelled. (I'll leave it to your imagination to guess who was the one who didn't.)

Sierra looked somewhat disappointed.

"Okay mum. Shall we take this down?" Sierra asked.

"Go ahead!"

"_He, he, he, he, he…"_ Sierra laughed a laugh that truly scared the crap out of the Keepers.

She put her hands on either side of the Dome and muttered a spell.

All of a sudden, the Dome went hurtling down back towards the ground.

"WAHOO! I FREAKING LOVE THIS PLANET!" Izzy screamed.

"I DON'T!" Heather yelled, trying to brace herself so she wouldn't fall.

"I WANT MY MOMMY!" Lindsay wailed.

When the Dome finally arrived on ground level, it actually hit it so hard that it bounced back and threw the Keepers off their feet.

The people who were now going about their regular business in the palace grounds winced in sympathy.

"What's with all the dangerous transportation on this planet?" Gwen asked exasperatedly.

"Dangerous? This isn't dangerous compared to certain modes of transportation that a certain _other _Queen prefers…" Adara muttered.

The Keepers looked at one another- out of the three Queens they knew, there was only one who liked 'dangerous' vehicles and even she wasn't as extreme as this…

They noticed that Adara wasn't quite as… lively when she said this as they walked down some corridors and up some stairs which had two guards on either side of it.

"This is the first level of the private part of the palace. On very few occasions such as today, regulars are allowed inside on the ground floor. They are however, special occasion or not- _never_ allowed on this level." Sierra said.

"And this is our private dining room." Sierra opened a door to a fairly large room with a circular table in the middle with some comfy-looking cushioned dining chairs with arms surrounding it. The far side of the wall was glass, with a double-door in the middle which led to a balcony outside.

There also a few lounge chairs here and there and a large stereo stood in one corner.

"Sit wherever you want!" Adara instructed.

Bridgette and Lindsay sat at the dining table, Izzy and Heather sat on lounge chairs next to each other and Gwen sat on a lounge chair near the door.

"Um, I'm sure we all have wondered… that is to say… my fellow Keepers and I… why do you not believe the Spectrans when they say that they had nothing to do with Carl's disappearance?"

Adara banged her fist on the table, startling Bridgette and Lindsay.

"_Well, she certainly gets to the point quickly…"_ Sierra thought, glancing at her mother nervously.

"I won't believe that unless I have proof!" Adara exclaimed.

"Why do you need proof? They told you that they have a trustworthy source!" Gwen exclaimed.

Adara glared. "So Carl just disappeared of his own accord, did he?" She snapped. "Oh wait- he didn't. He was killed by those vampires!"

"But they never found the body! How do you know he's even dead?" Izzy asked.

"So the gory scene we found in Mortem did not consist of his body, ripped to shreds?" Adara asked dryly.

The Keepers and Sierra shuddered at that image.

"But mom! The source said it was actually one of Radcliffe's minions that he was pissed at that he killed and enchanted to look like Carl!" Sierra exclaimed.

"Sierra, _dear, _why were they unable to reverse any enchantments placed on it then?" Adara asked.

Sierra sighed impatiently. "_Because_ mom," She said with the air of explaining something to a small child. "There are some curses and hexes that simply cannot be broken just like that! I'm sure that he might have put some sort of Irreversible Charm on the body, duh!" She rolled her eyes.

Adara faltered at that.

"I did not think about that. _Oops…_" Adara sank into her chair, putting her hand on her forehead.

"I've got a lot of apologising to do, don't I?" She said as she got up and walked out of the room.

"And another thing Sierra-" Heather started. Sierra turned to her.

"If you knew who we were the entire time, why did you wait until we were in Rapa Nui to say something?" Heather asked, puzzled.

"They told us about you after London I think it was, so we did know shortly after you did. But honestly? I sometimes forget who you really are and what you are capable of doing…" Sierra smiled sheepishly.

"Cuckoolander…" Izzy muttered under her breath

"I'm guessing that's why you went after Gwen even though she's on your side…"

"Nope- she's just nuts." Gwen commented coolly.

"Hey look! _Maybe_ I took things _a little too far…_" Sierra started.

"Understatement of the century, much?" The Keepers said in unison.

Sierra rolled her eyes. "My mom and I- when we get into something, we tend to take it a bit too far…"

"Another understatement…" Gwen muttered.

"Oh, I'm going to make it up to you. I'm going to help you kick Radcliffe's ass if _it's the last thing I do…_" Sierra said.

"Carl was a pretty cool guy! What Radcliffe has done- to so many people who knew him here, I'm sure many other Nadiri feel the same way!" She exclaimed.

They heard a ringing noise coming from her.

"I'm not ringing"! She exclaimed, when they looked at her.

The ringing sounded again.

"Oh right. The phone's ringing- not me…" Sierra rummaged in her pocket for it.

She glanced at it and held it up, pressing a button on it.

An image appeared above it with Adara in the foreground- and the Old Keepers in the background.

The others looked surprised. They hadn't said they were coming…

"Why don't you bring the Keepers down now? Their predecessors say they have somewhere to take them." Adara told her daughter.

"Will do!" Sierra ended the call, a mischievous smirk on her face.

"Did you know they were coming?" Gwen asked, suspicious.

"yep! But that's not why I'm smiling… _Hee-hee…_" Sierra chuckled.

"Then why-" Bridgette and Lindsay screamed as the table they sat at began to move while the others just watched in shock as the chairs were suddenly flung out, some of which they had to dodge.

The table flipped over on its top, leaving its legs in the air and the underside began to glow.

"Seriously? Freakiest planet ever…" Heather said, eyes still wide open in shock.

"You haven't seen anything yet… Now come on!" Sierra exclaimed, jumping onto the underside of the table- and disappearing.

"The royalty of this planet is officially insane…" Gwen said as she followed.

"_I heard that!"_ Sierra snapped from somewhere.

* * *

"ARUGH!"

All five Keepers crashed ceremoniously to the ground where they had been before going upstairs.

"What an entrance!"Akari commented. Both she and Deanna were outright laughing while the other three simply smiled in amusement.

"Not a good one…" Gwen muttered, getting up and brushing herself off.

"Aww, cheer up! You're going somewhere _really special _with us now!" Aideen said brightly.

"As long as it doesn't involve AstroDomes or crazy furniture, I'm good!" Heather breathed, having had the wind knocked out of her.

"Oh you don't need to worry about that…" Deanna grinned.

"Where are we going that has you all so cheerful?" Bridgette asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow.

"Somewhere." Marissa said simply.

"Even if I knew what they were talking about, I wouldn't tell you." Adara said when they glanced at her.

Vesta raised her arms to make a portal.

"After you all!" She allowed the Keepers to go in, then her own fellow Keepers and she went in last, closing the portal behind her.

* * *

Yep. This was pretty much a filler chapter. The last of the whole 'seeing the planets' thing that I did so that you, my lovely readers could see how they and the people that run them operate.

Anyway, the next chapter is one that I am looking forward to indeed- The Old Keepers past! Obvious things like their time as Keepers will be included, but what else would you like to see in this chapter? Things from _after _they defeat Radcliffe to before they meet the Total Drama Keepers? Before they meet each other when Marissa, Aideen and Akari hadn't yet moved to Canada? Let me know in your review and I'll try to address those!


	27. The Keeper Den Part 1

HyperForce has once again done artwork for this story. This time, he has drawn pictures of the Old Keepers both when they were young and as they are now. Go and have a look! He's done awesome work once again!

Also, I've mentioned before that KotE has a TV Tropes page now. Go edit it, peoples! Add a character sheet, add more tropes to the main page, review it there, whatever!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"Welcome to Hamilton, Ontario." Vesta said.

"What a lovely city…" Bridgette commented.

"Of course- this is where our story as Keepers began!" Deanna said. "And there's an even better part that we get to show you!" She smiled.

"_Deanna- SMILING? This has got to be good…"_ Heather thought.

"_Hey! I do smile! Occasionally…" _Deanna replied.

"Come on- to the park!" Vesta exclaimed, looking happier than any of them had ever seen her.

Gwen and Heather exchanged looks.

When they arrived, she led them over to what was possibly the biggest tree they had ever seen.

"Whoa." Izzy looked at it in awe. "That would make plenty of firewood!" Izzy exclaimed.

Aideen looked scandalized.

"Absolutely not! This is the entrance to the Keeper Den you're talking about!" She exclaimed.

"**Keeper Den?" **The Keepers asked in unison.

"Yep! We built it ourselves! "Akari said, patting the tree fondly.

"But what exactly is the Keeper Den?" Lindsay asked, puzzled.

"Ah. One of our greatest projects ever." Akari said.

"We built it. Took a good amount of work too." Deanna said.

"A place to come to for refuge- or to plot mayhem." Akari grinned.

"Only you would say that." Marissa rolled her eyes.

"Enough chatting! I'm sure they want to see how it works!" Aideen said, glancing at the younger generation who were looking more befuddled by the minute.

"You see, we started working on it right after we completed our training, with a little help from our predecessors. Only a Keeper can reveal the entrance and actually open it, although you may bring others with you." Vesta said.

"A simple matter to open it really. Just do this!" Deanna walked up and traced an arch in the tree which glowed in her signature colour and quickly left an archway big enough for each of them to step through.

"Watch your step when you're going down. There's a spiral staircase in there." Marissa instructed.

There were orbs of bright, golden light hovering above them inside glass spheres that lit the way.

"And here we are!" Vesta said as they took the final step.

They were back in the cavern they had created all those years ago. All the furnishings were there from before, looking brand new as if it hadn't been fifty years since they had been put there.

"This is amazing! You really built it on your own?" Bridgette asked as she and the others began exploring it.

"We did, yes." Vesta answered.

"You can redecorate it as you wish." Marissa added.

The Keepers merely nodded.

"And this isn't all to it, you know. It's practically an underground house, so to speak." Akari said.

"Now _that's_ beyond the impossible…" Heather shook her head.

"You would think that. Do you not see all the different archways around you?" Deanna pointed them out.

"This one here-" Deanna walked over to a curtain that hung from floor to ceiling and held it up. It was black, with a purple stripe at both the top and bottom and a golden elephant wearing an elaborate headdress in the middle. "-is the kitchen."

"I got that curtain from Thailand, just so you know." Akari added.

The Keepers walked inside it, leaving their predecessors outside.

"Pretty good for an underground setup..." Gwen commented.

The counters and cupboards were all carved out of stone and all the cooking appliances such as stove, a refrigerator and other cooking technology were there, of the level of advancement they had seen in the magical realms.

"One wonders how you power the appliances though…" Bridgette said, holding up a blender which had no plug whatsoever.

"Where are the electrical sockets anyway? " Izzy asked puzzled. "They're not needed here." Vesta said, peeking in. "It's a spell I put on the place to power anything you need to while here. Simply do what you have to turn it on! Mobile gadgets you bring here will also never run low on power while here."

"We made sure to cover all the bases." Marissa peeked in her head as well.

"I'm going to spending a lot of time here!" Lindsay said, eyes shining.

"I do not blame you, Lindsay-chan." Akari too peeked in.

"Japanese honorifics Akari? You must like her pretty much for that…" Vesta raised an eyebrow.

Akari rolled her eyes.

"What else is there to see here?" Izzy asked as she walked out.

The Old Keepers merely smiled as they all re-emerged from the kitchen to find that Aideen had lighted the fireplace and was sitting close to it, idly making random shapes from the fire there.

"Are we going to show them their own personal rooms now?" Aideen asked, making the flames around her hands disappear, leaving the fireplace alight.

"**Personal rooms?"** Izzy asked excitedly.

"But of course! If you need somewhere to get away from things for a while or flex your powers a bit, where's a better place to do it?" Aideen replied.

"Hear, hear!" Deanna called out.

"Let's go then!" Vesta said, leading them down a walkway.

At the end of the hallway, there were five different doors, each with a Keeper's symbol on it.

"Now these rooms, I am sure you will be pleased to discover, can only be opened by you. Just put your palm to the symbol on the door…" Vesta instructed.

They did so and each symbol glowed softly and the doors swung open.

* * *

"Nice." Gwen nodded appreciatively as she stepped into the room.

It was decorated in silver and black intertwined hangings on the ceiling, wall-to-wall black carpeting with a silver star pattern, a large bookcase on one side of the room, simple furniture like an armchair, a desk and chair, etc. There was even a window in the room, although Gwen couldn't quite figure out how a window worked underground…

Vesta saw her staring at the window, looking confused and chuckled.

"It's merely enchanted to look that way. Gives it a more realistic feeling, so to speak. You can change what weather it displays by merely touching the glass." Vesta put her palm on it and the weather changed from being sunny, to being dark and cloudy.

"I brought Alan and Amy here for the first time when they turned nine, in 1977. Those two were always fascinated by that window…" Vesta smiled at the memory.

"I could get used to this!" Gwen said, sinking into the armchair.

Vesta smiled. "And remember that you can add whatever you wish to this place- especially your room seeing as it is, well, _yours…_"

Gwen looked as if she already started plan what she wanted to do with it.

* * *

Bridgette walked into her room looking fascinated as Marissa shut the door behind them.

Her room also had a magical window and hangings from the roof appropriate to her power colour. The middle of the floor had a circular pool and the room was decorated to look like a beach, with beach style furniture, sand on the floor etc. There was even a circular hole in one wall with several shelves which contained many books.

"Is this actual sand?" Bridgette asked in awe, kneeling down and picking up some of the sand, letting it trickle through her fingers.

"Yes. Real Jamaican sand too." Marissa smiled. "I first brought some here in summer of 1980 after Paul and I took a trip there to show our children where I came from. As I remember, Travis was thirteen, Joseph was eleven and Janna was a few months shy of turning eight…"

"And I bet they loved it there- since they weren't under the manipulations of an evil reality TV-host superstar wannabe…" Bridgette said, longing in a beach chair.

"Believe me, they did. One day you must visit on your own. You would like it. And I'm not just saying this because I am from there." Marissa said.

"I'm sure." Bridgette laughed.

* * *

"AWESOME!"

Aideen chuckled at seeing Izzy's reaction to the room.

Izzy ran over to the magic window, changing the weather displayed there over and over again, jumped up to the banners and swung in them for a while, before coming down to examine the rest of the room.

There were quite a few paintings hung on one wall and a large bookcase next to the paintings. There was red and orange striped wall-to-wall carpeting, a fireplace across from the side with the paintings and a sofa in front of it.

There was also a table and a few chairs in the room, one of which Aideen sat on as she watched Izzy explore the room.

"Where'd you get the paintings?" Izzy asked, examining one of a countryside setting.

"I painted them all meself. Art is a great hobby of mine." Aideen smiled as Izzy admired the other paintings.

"My son Derek is the only one who hasn't inherited the creative gene." Aideen sighed. "Anya has won several awards for dance and choreography. Milah won awards for creative writing and taught English at a Middle School before she became Principal there and she even substitutes in a few classes occasionally... Derek? _He's a math lecturer…_" Aideen shuddered.

"Cool! I like acting! I want to get back into making movies and stuff, but they fired me after I got a little _too_ upset about something on the set…" Izzy pouted.

"It's very hard to do that. You'd practically have to pull off a miracle for that to happen…" Aideen said.

"In that case, I'm gonna start writing something so spectacular that it would make Oscar the Grouch pump his fists and cheer as soon as I get back to Playa Des Losers 2!" Izzy cheered.

* * *

"Wait, how do plants even survive in here? _We're underground…_" Heather asked puzzled as she stepped into the room, which had a grass covered floor.

Deanna put a hand to her face and had a thinking expression. "Oh, I dunno… Maybe it's a little something called… MAGIC!"

Heather rolled her eyes.

There was also the standard set of furniture a living room would have… and a punching bag.

Heather took a few quick jabs at it.

"That there is what I used to take out any frustration I had. Also helped with the hair-trigger temper I used to have." Deanna explained.

"_Used _to have?" Heather raised an eyebrow.

Deanna glowered at her.

Heather shuddered.

Deanna chuckled at the look on Heather's face.

"Works every time." She said. "Came in pretty handy when raising three rather energetic boys."

"Three?" Heather asked. "All boys and no girls?"

"Yep. My boys Tony, Adrian and Eric are identical triplets. After that experience, what sane person would want more?" Deanna shuddered at the thought.

"Jon and Kate?" Heather suggested.

"Like I said- what _sane_ person would." Deanna muttered.

"The place is also enchanted that you can use your powers without lasting damage to the room. Say for example, you do this-"

Deanna stamped the ground and a square shaped block rose out of the ground.

"-it'll be fine."

Deanna returned the block to the ground.

"Cool." Heather did the same.

* * *

With the Air Keeper's room, it was decorated in a whimsical fashion. The walls were painted light blue with fluffy white clouds here and there.

The wall-to-wall carpeting there was white and there were several different styles of furnishings in the room.

"As you can see, I was quite the dreamer. I loved reading about fantasy and magic and such, something which I had in common with Aideen. The only difference was that I was thrilled to actually become a part of it and she wasn't, at least at first…" Akari chuckled.

Lindsay plopped into an egg chair and began spinning it around. "WHEE!"

"That's half the reason I bought that chair!" Akari laughed.

"I gotta get one of these at home!" Lindsay squealed in delight as she hopped out laughing.

"I have one at home too. Whenever my daughter Kimi brings her children Rika, Hiroshi and Hitoshi for a visit, the two boys would have probably broken that chair by now if I didn't put some reinforcement spells on it, yet Kenzo thinks it funny that they break our furniture…" Akari muttered.

"What's your family like?" Lindsay asked.

"Well, I have two daughters- Akina the older one and Kimi is the younger one. From them I have five grandchildren- three grandsons and two granddaughters." Akari said. "Both Akina and Kimi are outgoing, but Kimi is even more so." Akari answered.

"Perhaps that's why she, Amy, Janna and Milah are the best of friends. Any time they get together and go out, chances are that they will _all_ put every store they go to out of stock, not that I'm much different…" Akari grinned.

"I think I need to meet your family!" Lindsay exclaimed.

* * *

Everyone was now back in the first room.

"I'm sure that you wouldn't want Gwen to have to bring you here all the time. I'd advise you all to get teleporter bracelets, but those things can be horribly expensive so the next alternative would be to either learn how fly long distance which isn't as bad as it sounds, drive or catch a plane." Vesta suggested.

"As long as you don't ride with someone like that nut over there-" Akari thumbed Deanna. "-you'll be fine."

"_Why?"_ Heather asked suspiciously.

"Well, she _does_ tend to drive kinda recklessly, take a lot of chances, never repairs her vehicles and apparently does _**not **_believe in traffic laws…" Vesta said.

"The inhabitants of Edmonton scream in terror whenever she goes out to her garage..." Akari said. "I rode with her once when I visited. I'm never doing it again." Akari shuddered at the memory...

* * *

_**Several Years Ago…**_

Akari and Deanna were in front of a nice-looking two-storey house and appeared to be around their early forties.

Akari was wearing a business suit while Deanna was dressed more casually.

"You don't mind giving me a ride down to the conference centre, do you?" Akari asked.

"Of course not!" Deanna fished out her car keys.

All of a sudden a dark-haired man around their age appeared upstairs, looking down at them through a window.

"Mrs. Nanika, are you sure you want to get in that car with my wife?" he asked jokingly.

"Why shouldn't I?" Akari called up, puzzled.

"She isn't exactly the best driver you see..." He said in all seriousness. "I love that woman but I would never get into any vehicle with _**her**_ behind the wheel!"

"Oh come off it, Troy!" Deanna grinned up at him. "You know I'm an excellent driver!"

And with that, she dragged Akari with her to the car.

"All buckled up then, Kari?" Deanna said.

Akari nodded.

"Then hold on for a wild ride!" Deanna grinned.

Akari's eyes widened.

As soon as Deanna backed out of the garage, the rampage began.

She drove extremely erratically almost hitting several things like a bus, a fire hydrant, a dog and a police officer.

As said police officer got into his police car and started chasing after them, and the dog began his chase too, barking madly, Deanna's driving got even crazier, with the car leaving the ground at some points.

"Deanna Wilson, slow this vehicle down now! You're going to kill us both! I want to live to train the next Air Keeper you know!" Akari screamed even louder and her eyes got even wider as the car somehow managed to fly straight into the air right over another car and began doing mid-air twirls.

"IN YOUR FACE! HA! HA! HA!" Deanna laughed at the driver of the car, who sat there looking stunned.

The car somehow managed to land without any damage to it and Deanna continued on her rampage. By this time, at least a dozen police cars were chasing them...

* * *

"Do you really want to know how that ended?" Akari asked.

All five Keepers shook their heads vigorously.

"I don't even know how you manage to keep your license..." Aideen commented.

"Who says I have?" Deanna smirked.

The Old Keepers looked at one another weirdly.

Marissa face-palmed. "And that is only one of the reasons that we call her 'White Madea'..." She sighed.

"I don't think even Madea was that insane..." Vesta said.

"Please. The RCMP would be no match for me!" Deanna waved her hand dismissively.

Izzy cheered.

"Okay, so can we get to the real reason we came here today?" Vesta asked, looking slightly annoyed.

"Okay stick-in-the-mud. Keep your hair on!" Deanna exclaimed.

Vesta narrowed her eyes at her.

Aideen, Akari and Marissa chuckled.

"You are acting like you used to when we first met!" Aideen said when the two best friends turned to look at them.

A moment passed and Vesta and Deanna began to laugh as well.

"Why don't you start by saying what life was like before you came to Canada and met us Marissa?" Vesta said to her. "After all, you were the first one after Deanna I found after Alice gave me the Star!"

"Okay then." Marissa smiled.

* * *

_**Negril, Jamaica, 1960**_

"Come on Marissa!"

"No."

"You know you want to!"

"I know I DON'T want to."

"Oh come on, please?"

"Not today."

"Marissa Clarke, stop being a spoilsport and get into this water!"

"Absolutely _not!_"

Teenage Marissa was relaxing on the shore and had no desire to go into the water today. She did like swimming but today she just wasn't in the mood. Her friends had almost literally dragged her out of her home to the beach and oddly enough, her parents hadn't said anything...

"You're really being a spoilsport now!" One of the girls pouted.

"I am not being a spoilsport Olive. I just don't feel like going into the water today…" She said. She had her reasons, but she wasn't going to tell _them_ that…

A few weeks prior, she had come to the beach with her mother, father, sister and brother. She had swum away from them to a side of the beach where there weren't as many people.

She sat in the shallow end and was swirling around her hand in the water when she noticed the water behaving weirdly around her.

When she raised her hand out of the water, the water followed it up.

Marissa went wide-eyed.

She moved her hand sharply to the right, to the left. And still it followed.

"_Wha di devil is this?" _She thought.

And it only got stranger after that.

Once , when her mother had sent her for some water at the village standpipe, she turned on the water and _it froze._

She staggered back in shock and ran halfway home before she realised she was supposed to have gotten water to take back home…

Now here she was on the shore avoiding the water as much as she could, at least until she could figure out what had happened to her…

Her thoughts were broken by screams of terror. Startled, she looked up to see Olive's younger sister Mary in distress. The nine year old, in her opinion, had always been rather… defiant to put it mildly. Now, against her sister's commands, she had gone out pretty far and was now in trouble.

Everyone on the shore started panicking. Except her.

There weren't any lifeguards then, so she didn't think twice before running into the water and swimming to the little girl. Just before she could get to her, Mary sunk.

Those on shore screamed.

Marissa ducked under, looking for the girl, holding her breath.

She spotted Mary a few metres away and swam for her. She couldn't hold her breath for much longer and exhaled.

And found that she was able to breathe underwater.

She didn't think of it at first as she reached for the girl and brought her up to the surface, where Mary began to cough.

"We'll be out soon. Don't worry." She reassured her as she began to bring the girl back to shore.

Once she arrived, she stood up and held Mary in her arms bridal-style with hardly any effort and laid her on the sand, where she began to cough up water.

Marissa snuck away before anyone could notice her as all their attention was on Mary at the moment.

She entered her home and immediately ran to the room that she shared with her younger sister Lorna and dried off quickly.

"MARISSA! LORNA! DARNLEY!" Her mother Matilda called out.

She hurried into the kitchen where her mother and father Amos were waiting for them.

"Dears… we have something to tell you. And it's not going to be easy." Matilda said.

Marissa, Lorna who was fourteen and Darnley who was eleven looked at one another nervously.

"We're moving." Amos said.

"To Kingston, right?" Lorna asked. "Or even to Montego Bay?"

"No. We're going to Canada." He answered.

There was silence for only a split second.

"WHAT?" They shouted in unison.

"We're leaving Jamaica?" Marissa said.

"To go freeze wi behinds off in Canada?" Darnley said.

"Why so far?" Lorna asked.

"Many West Indians are taking advantage of the opportunities being offered there. Jamaicans are no different. It will all work out in the long run!" He exclaimed.

"We have not been doing well here. Jobs are scarce, times are rough; we can't live like this…" Matilda said sadly.

"_Because going to a foreign country where we will hardly be welcomed is going to make it any better…" _Marissa thought sadly.

* * *

"Wow." Bridgette said quietly.

"Yep. I was not happy to be leaving my nice little beach town for the faraway land of Canada that I had never even so much as seen a picture of." Marissa said.

"I can only imagine... But at least it turned out okay, right?" She asked.

"It did. We ended up moving to an area that wasn't so bad and I made new friends fairly quickly." Marissa said, smiling at her fellow Keepers.

"Plus there was the fact that most people were scared shitless of me then and they saw that I was hanging out with her and Akari. If they had even dared to say ANYTHING…" Deanna shook a fist.

"True, true!" Vesta said, smiling.

"Shall I go next then?" Akari asked.

"Go on!" Vesta said.

* * *

_**Nagoya, Japan, 1960**_

" それはしばらくの間、最後に自宅にいるのがよいです。タイ、中国、韓国、マレーシア... 私は十分これのがあった。私は名古屋に戻ってこられてとても嬉しい!" Teenage Akari said as she sat at the dining room table with her parents Kimiko and Ichirou.

Her parents looked at one another nervously and she did not miss this.

"何ですか？" She asked suspiciously. **(1)**

"Akari, do you know why we have been teaching you English?" Ichirou asked her.

Akari eyed him with trepidation.

"No…" She paused for a moment before a look of horrid realization came on her face.

"Wait, we're not moving, AGAIN, are we?" Akari exclaimed.

"Yes." Ichirou said.

"OH COME ON!" Akari shouted.

"We only got back to Nagoya six months ago! That's the longest that we've been back!" Akari complained.

Her parents opened their mouths to speak, but before they could, Akari began ranting.

"เราไปประเทศไทยเป็นเวลาสามปีเมื่อผมสี่ กลับมาเมื่อฉันถูกเจ็ดและอยู่เท่านั้นสำหรับสามเดือน!" **(2)**

"MALAYSIA AKAN MENGHABISKAN MASA SELAMA EMPAT TAHUN DI SANA, KEMBALI APABILA SAYA SEBELAS TAHUN DAN TINGGAL DI JEPUN SELAMA EMPAT BULAN!" **(3)**

"한국. 거기서 2 년. 열세살 때 일본으로 돌아 왔어요. 우리가 해제되기 전에 우리는 석 달 동안 여기 없었어요. _**다시**__**!**_" **(4)**

"中國。我們在那裡呆了三年，只有半年前回來！請告知，我們去哪兒，_**這個時候？**_"**(5)**

Akari breathed heavily, glaring daggers at her parents.

"How's a girl supposed to make and KEEP friends like this? Every time I make new friends, I end up having to leave them!" She exclaimed.

"Well Akari-_kun,_ your father and I thought the same thing and this time we are going there to live permanently…" Kimiko said.

"Then why not stay here in Nagoya? I miss being _home!_" Akari said, stomping off to her room.

"Akari Fuijiwara, come back here!" Her father called out.

She ignored him.

Once in her room, Akari began calming down.

"_No need to freak out, Akari-chan. There was no need to go crazy on your parents like that…"_

"_Now where is that old kimono I had hanging around?"_ Akari thought.

She turned her attention to a beautiful black kimono with gold pattern which hung nearby.

Before she could get to it however, it floated over to her.

Akari's eyes widened.

She swore under her breath in Japanese.

"_Just my mind playing tricks on me. I am __**not **__going baka…"_ She thought as she attempted to do something like it again, focusing her hands on the doors of her closet.

The doors of said closet swung open and all of the clothes flew out the closet and dumped themselves on top of her in a tornado.

Akari fought to hold back a scream.

"_Okay, that was definitely not my mind playing tricks on me…" _She popped up from the pile of clothes looking scared.

"Maybe, maybe this isn't so bad… If I keep it a secret, and maybe, maybe if I learn to control this newfound ability, I could have fun with this!" She smirked mischievously.

* * *

"You took it pretty well…" Gwen remarked dryly.

"I figured it was no use freaking out, so I decided to get used to it. I was used to upheaval…" Akari shrugged.

"Did you actually do anything?" Lindsay asked.

"Well, I do remember before I left Nagoya, I caused the wind to blow the hair sticks right out of Yumi Morimoya's perfectly rolled bun…" Akari said, dreamily, yet smirking at the same time.

"You certainly had a fair bit of control over your powers before you met Janessa…" Vesta raised an eyebrow.

"A feat, I can assure you, I was quite proud of…" Akari said, doing a little bow.

Deanna rolled her eyes.

"Isn't it Aideen's turn to tell her tale?" Marissa asked.

"It most certainly is!" Aideen exclaimed.

* * *

_**Dundee, Scotland, 1960**_

Teenage Aideen was sitting in a park doodling in a sketchpad humming under her breath.

"Hey Little Red!" A voice called out.

"_Oh no…"_ Aideen thought worriedly. Unfortunately, she'd know that voice anywhere…

The sketchpad was roughly knocked out of her hand and Aideen was face to face with the girl who made her life a living hell every day both at school and everywhere else- Maddie Monroe.

"Oh look girls! It's Aideen Mackenzie, the little pipsqueak of Dundee!" She said to her friends, who immediately began laughing.

"J-just leave me alone, Maddie. I'm not in the mood!" Aideen said, voice quavering slightly.

"Aww, look, is Little Red afraid? No wonder! After all, redheads_ are_ useless people with no souls!"

Maddie's friends laughed again.

Aideen tried to get her notebook off the ground, but Maddie got it first.

"Aww, look! It's Little Red's cute little notebook! Let's see what's inside it!"

"NO!" Aideen stood up and tried to grab it, but Maddie merely snatched it away.

"Give it back!" Aideen jumped up and tried to reach it, but being as short as she was, it didn't work.

"Shove off, pipsqueak!" One of Maddie's friends shoved her to the ground.

Aideen watched, looking mortified as the bullies looked through all her drawings.

"Little Red drawing all the time and it's not even all that good!" Maddie said.

The she did something that REALLY upset Aideen.

She tore the sketchbook in half.

Aideen's eyes started to water as she watched the pieces of paper flutter to the ground. All of her drawings, so many that she had worked so hard on- all gone…

"Look at the little cry-baby! Is she upset that hewr widdle shwetchpad is GONE?"

Aideen got up and ran away crying.

However, the torment for her wasn't over yet as the bullies began to chase her.

She ran blindly into an alley and smacked straight into the brick wall.

"OUCH!" She wailed.

She was suddenly hauled up roughly by her arms and spun around to see Maddie right in her face.

Aideen's eyes widened in terror and she began to struggle.

All of a sudden, Maddie's 'friends' dropped her and clutched their hands, howling in pain.

"What's wrong with you two?" Maddie asked raising her thick unibrow.

"HOT!" One wailed, eyes watering.

Aideen took opportunity of this distraction and ran around Maddie and out the alley.

"You come back here you little pipsqueak!" Maddie roared.

"_She doesn't ever give up, does she?" _Aideen thought.

"Gotcha!"

Maddie grabbed her from behind by the hair and yanked her back, _hard, _making her eyes water in pain_._

Maddie began laughing evilly as she drew back a fist.

Aideen felt her hands grow hot and she grabbed Maddie's face with them.

Maddie staggered back, howling in pain.

Aideen ran all the way home, not stopping until she got there and slammed the door shut behind her and leaned against it, wide-eyed and breathing heavily.

"What's wrong with you, Deenie dear? You look like you've just seen the Loch Ness Monster!" Her mother Molly, a blonde woman with hazel eyes like hers came in from the kitchen with an apron around her waist.

"_I haven't but it was certainly close…"_ Aideen muttered.

"Aww, poor dear. Did those nasty neighbourhood bullies come at you again?" Her mother hugged her.

Aideen nodded tearfully, thinking of her lost sketchpad.

"What happened?"

Aideen's three older brothers Alexander, George and Rodney who were eighteen, twenty and twenty-three respectively who were all blond like their mother stood in the doorway.

"Bullies." Her mother said sadly.

Her brothers, who were always rather… protective of their little sister growled in fury.

"Then perhaps this isn't the time to tell you the news then…" Molly said nervously.

"Surely it can't be much worse than being tormented by Maddie every day or the day when dad died, can it?" Aideen said glumly.

Her mother looked at her brothers and took a deep breath.

"We're moving." She said.

Aideen perked up. "Moving?"

"Yes, dear. Moving. To Canada. There are many Scots that move there too, so we shouldn't be alone in that regard, now should we?" Molly watched in amazement as Aideen got up and began to cheer.

"We're MOVING! I will be all the way across the Atlantic Ocean! Far away from Maddie Monroe and her goons! THIS IS THE BEST NEWS I'VE HAD ALL BLOODY DAY!" Aideen grinned and ran to her room, leaving behind her family, looking bewildered.

As soon as she was there however, she remembered that her troubles with bullies weren't the only ones she had. Didn't she, after all recently discover that she could control fire?

Aideen cupped her hands together and flames appeared in them.

Her eyes widened as she watched this sight- and then widened even more in horror as the flames suddenly shot up to the roof.

She yelped as she tried to control the flames and bring them back from setting the house on fire and she did, but just barely.

And then there was the time that when she had come home from school and almost fell into the fireplace but didn't get burnt?

And the time she was at the library and she accidentally set the bookshelf on fire? Luckily she had managed to get away before they figured out it was her…

And more recently, her most recent encounter with the beast known as Maddie. Hadn't she somehow made herself extremely hot to the touch? Unbearable to them but not to her?

Things were getting really weird…

* * *

Izzy was fuming (literally!) at the crap that her predecessor had gone through because of those bullies.

"Please tell me that they didn't pull a Karma Houdini…" Heather said, looking similarly upset, remembering the days that she had been bullied.

"Oh no, they didn't." Aideen said, grinning mischievously.

Deanna perked up. "What did your brothers do?" She asked.

"They made sure that Maddie Monroe and her friends got their just desserts, starting with their expulsion from school. Turns out that I wasn't their only target. They found others that were bullied by her too and brought those to light as well." Aideen said, smiling.

"If you ask me, that's not enough..." Heather muttered.

"Last I heard, Maddie was in jail in Bristol for attempted murder. I feel sorry for whoever it was she tried to strangle…" Aideen shuddered at the thought. "But I'm glad karma got her back. They weren't just a menace to Scotland, but to the entire U.K. …"

"If you don't mind my asking, what became of your brothers?" Bridgette asked.

"Alexander and Rodney returned to the U.K. with some of their family members when they retired and George currently lives in Prince Edward Island with his family." Aideen said.

"So you and Marissa are the only ones with siblings?" Heather asked her.

"Well, I have a younger brother, David, who lives in Manitoba. I haven't seen him in a while…" Vesta said, remembering her brother.

"Yep. So that means that only Akari and I were only children. Unfortunately for me, that came with unpleasant side effects..." Deanna shuddered as she got ready to tell her tale…

* * *

_**Deanna's House, Hamilton, Ontario, 1960**_

"DEANNA MARGARET THOMAS!" Her mother called from downstairs.

Deanna who was in her room upstairs sighed. What had she done this time?

"COMING!" She shouted back.

She slid down the stair rails and went into the dining room where her mother Dolores was waiting for her.

"I want you to get cleaned up and ready for dinner. The Hansons are coming over for dinner." Dolores said.

"This won't involve having to wear a dress or a skirt, will it?" Deanna raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. You will be wearing a dress. I picked it out for you. I want no complaints whatsoever-" Her mother started as Deanna began to complain.

"Why do I have to wear a dress just because the Hansons are coming over? I hate dresses! Besides they come over all the time! Vesta IS my best friend after all!" Deanna began.

"We're having a _proper_ sit-down dinner. Multiple courses, different types of cutlery- which you are GOING to use properly…" Dolores trailed off as she saw that Deanna wasn't paying attention to her.

Dolores face-palmed and shook her head, perfectly curled brown curls bouncing along with it.

"Go upstairs and get ready. Your outfit is in my room. Your father will be home from work soon. Don't let him get here and you haven't started to get ready!"

Deanna grumbled and stomped all the way up the stairs.

When she opened the door to her mother's room and saw the dress, she grew a repulsed look on her face.

It was a pink and white dress, with _**lots**_ of frills. It was such a putrid shade of pink, that it made Deanna want to puke. Pink was _NOT _her favourite colour and this dress certainly wouldn't help…

There were also a pair of stockings, some black Mary-Janes and bright pink ribbons that she was obviously meant to put in her hair.

She took up everything gingerly and carried it into her room.

She held up and looked at it with extreme distaste.

She sat down on a chair by the window and sulked.

"_Stupid dress. I hate dresses! Especially ugly pink ones like that!" _She thought.

She held her hand out the window and touched the tree branch that was there.

It immediately began to sprout leaves.

Deanna blinked.

"_What just happened?"_ She thought.

She touched another part of the branch and it sprouted even more leaves.

"_Did I just do that?" _She wondered.

She turned to a potted plant and flicked her hand- and the plant grew tall enough to touch the ceiling.

"WOAH!" Her eyes widened in shock.

"DEANNA! I HOPE YOU'RE PUTTING ON THAT DRESS!" Dolores called.

Deanna grumbled as she put on the dress.

When she walked down the stairs her mother and her father John were waiting for her.

"Don't you look precious!" her mother cooed.

Deanna looked anything but. The ridiculously frilly pink-and-white dress and the pink bow she had pulled her hair into a single ponytail with looked even more ridiculous on her as she scowled.

"Oh come on dear, cheer up! Put a smile on your face! That dress brings out your eyes, such a lovely shade of green!" Her father said.

Deanna's green eyes did not look very lovely at the moment as they showed nothing but displeasure…

The doorbell rang.

"That'll be them now! Deanna, go answer the door!" Her mother practically shoved her out the room.

Deanna cursed under her breath the entire time.

She opened the door to reveal Carlton and Catherine Hanson, Vesta, who was in a soft blue dress and Vesta's eleven year old brother David.

One look at Deanna and both Vesta and David struggled to hold in a snicker.

Deanna glared at them and they both shut up.

"Hello, Miss Thomas! Don't you look beautiful?" Mrs Hanson said, smiling.

Deanna rolled her eyes and stepped aside to let them in.

"Where'd they get that monstrosity?" Vesta whispered to her as they walked behind her family to the living room.

"No clue. I don't think I want to know either…" Deanna whispered back.

Once there, Deanna and Vesta sat apart from the others and began a whispered conversation.

"Deanna, have you noticed anything, anything… _weird_ going on lately?" Vesta asked.

Deanna stiffened.

"What weird things?" She said sharply.

Vesta hesitated for a moment. "Well, last night when I was looking for something under my bed, it was dark and I found myself wishing that there was some light in the room and all of a sudden, my hand- my hand was _glowing!_" She said, wide-eyed.

Deanna went wide-eyed as well. "And I thought I was alone in the freaky things department!" She exclaimed.

"Why? What happened to you?" Vesta asked.

"Well, once when I was doing some gardening, not that dear old mum and dad wanted me to- dirt and all that, I was taking some rocks out and they changed sizes in my palm!" Deanna said.

Vesta was about to respond when they were all called into the dining room where everything was set up.

Deanna and Vesta made sure to sit next to one another.

Deanna's mother brought out the appetiser and they all ate it without incident.

It was during the main course that things began to get… _interesting…_

David was picking at his vegetables because like most children, he didn't like them.

"Mom, do I _have_ to eat these string beans?" he asked.

"Yes you do." Catherine answered curtly.

David pouted.

Deanna only _glanced _at the hated string beans and they began to grow bigger.

Luckily, no one was really paying attention to them at the time, except Vesta and Deanna and they were freaking out.

"_Do something!"_ Vesta, eyes wide, gripped Deanna's arm _hard._

"Ouch! Okay, okay! Just leggo my arm!" Deanna wrenched away her arm from Vesta's tight grip and tried to bring the beans back to normal, which fortunately for her, worked.

Then there was the matter of the wooden chairs that they were sitting on.

Deanna only touched one of the legs as she reached down to retrieve her fallen fork and all four legs began to change shape.

She fell out of the chair, startled and hit her head.

The fork, which had fallen fairly far away from her, flew straight into her grasp when she reached out for it in a daze.

When she glanced up, it was to see Vesta and her parents glancing down at her.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" John asked.

"I don't think so…" Deanna rubbed her head, feeling woozy.

"Why don't you go to your room then?" Her mother suggested. "I can bring dessert up for you!"

"Good idea." Deanna said, getting up wobbily.

"I'll help you up…" Vesta got up and went to help her friend up the stairs.

Once up there, Deanna sat on the edge of her bed, drinking water.

"Will this weirdness end?" Deanna asked.

"Somehow I don't think it will…" Vesta replied.

* * *

"Well, you certainly got a bad deal, Deanna. Probably only comes second to my story…" Aideen said.

"I agree! And the way you describe that dress makes me think I wouldn't want to wear it either. I don't blame you…" Heather said picturing the dress.

"It was bad!" Deanna said, sending her memory of the much-hated dress through the Link to her.

Heather shuddered. _"Ick! Even worse than I thought!"_

"I'm guessing I'm not going to want to see that…" Gwen said.

"I was such a girly-girl then and even I didn't like that dress!" Vesta exclaimed. "But onto my story now!"

* * *

_**Vesta's House, Hamilton, Ontario, 1960**_

That dinner with the Thomas household had certainly been the weirdest one _she_ had been to…

Deanna's newfound powers- and hers. While she was surprised that Deanna had some sort of power, it sort of relieved her in away in that she wasn't alone in what she was going through.

Like the time she made that light bulb explode.

She was just in her room reading a book in the early evening and decided that it had gotten a bit too dark for her liking and got up to go turn on the light.

As soon as she flicked the switch, she felt a surge of electricity crackling around her arm, which travelled straight into the light switch, along the wiring and straight to the light bulb, making it shatter into tiny pieces, which she had quite a difficult time explaining to her parents how it happened.

Then there was the fact that occasionally, her hands would glow with a silvery light and sometimes she could form orbs of light from them, which could blast things apart, which included accidentally blasting the wig off her French teacher, Madame Lavigne's head. She had managed to run away before Madame Lavigne or anyone else who had been nearby figured out what caused it.

And of the course there was the time she almost got her brother David struck by a bolt of lightning.

She was out in the front yard trying to relax, but her brother had his friends over and they were running all over the place, making lots of noise and being as raucous as they could possibly be.

Vesta had gotten so annoyed that she wished that lightning would fall from the sky and shut them all up. It fell from the sky all right- this time making them scream in terror and run inside their homes as it set the lawn on fire. And this lightning had come out of the clear blue sky, mind you…

"Vesta!" Her mother called for her as she was reading in the living room.

"Coming mother!" She said, quickly putting away the book and hurrying to the kitchen.

She got there to see her parents in the kitchen.

"Have a seat." Carlton pulled out a chair for her.

Vesta raised an eyebrow, puzzled but sat anyway.

"Vesta, we noticed that you have been acting a little, well, strange lately. Is there anything you want to tell us?" Catherine asked accusingly.

"No…" Vesta said, puzzled at their accusing tone, but then feeling slightly worried. Had they somehow figured out the strange things she could do?

"Are you sure?" Her father asked in the same accusing tone as her mother.

"_Yes."_ Vesta said as firmly as she could.

"Well we did notice that you seem to be… associating with that Rosier boy- Simon, quite a bit lately and we thought…" Her mother looked embarrassed as she trailed off.

Vesta sat there for all of five seconds before she went red all the way to the roots of her hair when she realized what they were implying.

"You- but you- you didn't think that- did you?" She asked incredulously.

They nodded silently, looking quite embarrassed.

"I can't believe this!" Vesta stormed out of the room, retrieved the book she had been reading before from the living room and went back up to her room.

"_Parents can be so embarrassing!"_ She thought furiously.

She opened the book to the page she was at before and began to read again.

It wasn't long before something else weird happened though…

Soon her hair began swirling around with energy.

Vesta immediately got up and ran to the mirror, to see tendrils of energy wrapping themselves around sections of her hair and when it finished, her hair, sticking out in different directions, was as straight as a poker.

"Why me?" She asked in a resigned tone before flopping back onto the bed to stare at the ceiling.

"At least my grandmother isn't here. She'd just make everything seem even worse…" She thought.

"Hey Vesta, Vesta! Guess what?" Her brother bolted into the room.

"What is it?" Vesta asked, sitting up.

"Grandma Tatiana is coming for a visit!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"OH COME ON!" Vesta grabbed her hair in frustration. _"WHY?"_

* * *

"If it was one thing Deanna and I had in common, it was mortifying parents…" Vesta said as she and Deanna glanced at one another. "Even back then, parents were embarrassing…"

"Tell me about it!" Akari exclaimed.

Marissa and Aideen shared a look.

"Don't I know it?" Gwen said, thinking of her mother.

"Sometimes one would swear that parents' only purpose was to embarrass you…" Heather grumbled.

"Err… What became of 'that Rosier boy'?" Gwen asked curiously.

"Simon Rosier eventually became my husband and the father of my twins Alan and Amy." Vesta smiled. "We were great friends at first and eventually it grew into something more…"She said dreamily.

"Life was great with him while it lasted…" She said sadly.

"While it lasted?" Gwen was almost afraid to ask what had happened.

"Yes. Simon eventually died of a heart attack three years ago. I was in England visiting Alan and neither Amy nor Jack, my son-in-law was at home with him when it happened…" She said, bowing her head sadly as Deanna put a hand on her shoulder.

"Oh. I'm sorry I asked…"

"You wouldn't have known, Gwen. Not your fault." Vesta said. "How about we move onto when Deanna and I first met _our_ predecessors, shall we?"

* * *

Vesta and Deanna were now in what looked like an earlier version of the park that the Keeper Den was located in, doing their homework.

"So, Vesta, what exactly DOES 742 + 1396 add up to?" Deanna asked, chewing on her pencil.

"Figure it out yourself, Deanna. I'm not helping you cheat!" Vesta said, not looking up from her book.

"Oh come on! It wouldn't be helping me to cheat! It would be helping me not to fail!" Deanna begged.

"By cheating." Vesta said.

Deanna tried to sneak a peek into Vesta's book but she snapped it shut and sighed.

"Deanna, go do your homework by yourself if this is how you're going to be!" Vesta said frustrated.

Deanna poked her in the shoulder.

"And you're going to fail Math class and this isn't the only class you're like this in. Remember Food and Nutrition class? Because you didn't pay attention to the recipe, you made the cake explode in the oven! And don't even get me started on- _what?_"

Deanna motioned around them to indicate that everything and everyone was frozen.

"What's going on here?" Vesta asked in fear.

"How would I know?" Deanna asked sarcastically.

"What do we do?" Vesta asked.

"Panic?" Deanna suggested dryly.

"Sounds like a plan…" Vesta said.

She let out a high pitched scream of alarm and began hyperventilating.

"The world is not ending… the world is not ending… it is NOT ending! I have my whole life ahead of me!" Vesta wailed.

"Get a hold of yourself, girl!" Deanna shook her.

"I will never be able to grow up and be a successful woman, have a family or hand in this ridiculously challenging Math homework to the teacher!" Vesta wailed.

"There is no need to panic, girls." A German-accented voice said.

They looked up startled, to see five old women appearing through a portal.

"_Holy hell."_ Deanna whispered in awe.

Two of the women, obviously twins, who had curly shoulder-length grey hair and blue eyes giggled.

"I would like to think that we have nothing to do with Hell, thank you very much…" An Indian woman with steely grey hair pulled back into a single braid muttered with a Trinidadian accent.

"We most certainly don't!" Another woman with long, wavy hair exclaimed with a Polish accent.

"Indeed. " German-accented woman, who had her hair pulled back into a short ponytail commented.

"Who are you?" Vesta asked suspiciously, once Deanna had gotten her to calm down.

"There's no need to panic, sweetheart!" One of the twins said with a Southern American accent.

"My name is Alice." German woman said.

"I'm Elizabeth!" One of the twins said.

"I'm Emily!" The other twin said.

"I am Saveeta." The Indo-Trinidadian woman said.

"And my name is Janessa." The last woman said.

"I know you are wondering where we came from, so let's cut to the chase shall we?" Alice asked.

All Vesta and Deanna could do was nod silently.

"You have been able to do strange things lately, haven't you?" Alice asked.

"Yeah…" Deanna said.

"You, blonde girl, what is your name?" Alice asked.

"Vesta Hanson." Vesta answered.

"And you?" Saveeta asked Deanna.

"Deanna Thomas."

"Right. Well, you both have been able to control an Element." Alice said.

Both Vesta and Deanna raised an eyebrow.

"You, Vesta, haven you been able to control Energy in some form, haven't you?" Alice asked.

Vesta's eyes widened and she could only nod.

"And you Deanna can control Earth in some forms, right?" Saveeta asked.

Deanna remembered what she had dune and nodded as well.

"Well, you see, we can do the same things as well. Let's give a demonstration, shall we?" Alice turned to the women with her.

First Alice held her hands together and sent a beam of energy straight up into the sky.

Saveeta focused on a patch of ground between them and a column of hardened dirt rose up. She moved her hands in slicing-type motions and circles of dirt began flying, which Vesta and Deanna moved quickly to dodge.

"I believe you now." Vesta said. "But what about Elizabeth, Emily and Janessa?" She asked.

"Well, little darlin' I can control fire and my sister Elizabeth here can control water!" Emily exclaimed.

They demonstrated by combining their powers to make a stream of hot, steaming water.

"And I, my dears, can control Air." Janessa demonstrated by making air swirl all around her and blowing the two girls back slightly.

"So, then what do you three have to do with us?" Vesta asked.

"You see, the two of you aren't the only ones who have been demonstrating Elemental powers. There are three other girls, those that control Water, Fire and Air. Those that control Elements are called Keepers. I have seen that the other three Keepers will join you in your country, here in your city, soon." Alice explained.

Vesta and Deanna didn't even ask how she had 'seen' this.

"You must use this-" Alice reached inside her blouse and pulled out the Silver Star.

"-to find them. It is called the Silver Star. It enabled us to find you, and it will enable you, Vesta, as the Keeper of Energy, you are the most powerful of the five. You are the only one who can use the Star to find them." Alice handed it to Vesta who looked at it in awe before putting it on carefully as Deanna watched in amazement.

"And there is another one of your powers that we must tell you about. All five of you share a telepathic Link that you can share your thoughts with each other and your own predecessor." Alice said.

Vesta and Deanna glanced at one another.

"You can use this to 'call' us by messaging me Vesta, when you have found your fellow Keepers." She stopped to take in the look on their faces.

"It seems like a lot to take in, yes. Believe me; I was just as surprised as you were when my grandmother Parvati told me I could control the Earth Element just as she had!" Saveeta exclaimed.

"Once you do find them all, we can train you to control your powers. Those are welcomed lessons, are they not?" Alice smiled as the two girls nodded vigorously.

"We will use the Link to keep in touch…" Alice waved as she made another portal to leave, leaving Vesta and Deanna standing there in awe of what had just happened.

* * *

"Interesting story…" Gwen commented. The others nodded in agreement with her.

Bridgette got up and stretched. "Do you think we could take a break?" She asked.

"Sounds like a good idea." Marissa agreed. She turned to her fellow Keepers. "What do you ladies think?"

"Good idea, I think!" Deanna said as she leaned back into a chair.

"All right then. Break time it is!" Vesta exclaimed, going into the kitchen to get herself a drink.

* * *

**(1)** "It is good to be home at last for a while. Thailand, China, South Korea, Malaysia... I have had enough of this. I'm so glad to be back in Nagoya!"

"What?" _**(Japanese)**_

**(2) **"WE WENT TO THAILAND FOR THREE YEARS WHEN I WAS FOUR. CAME BACK WHEN I WAS SEVEN AND ONLY STAYED FOR THREE MONTHS!" _**(Thai)**_

**(3)** MALAYSIA WAS NEXT. WE SPENT FOUR YEARS THERE, COMING BACK WHEN I WAS ELEVEN AND STAYING IN JAPAN FOR FOUR MONTHS! _**(Malay)**_

**(4)** SOUTH KOREA. TWO YEARS THERE. CAME BACK TO JAPAN WHEN I WAS THIRTEEN. WE WEREN'T HERE FOR THREE MONTHS BEFORE WE WERE OFF. _**AGAIN! (Korean)**_

**(5) **CHINA. WE STAYED THERE FOR THREE MORE YEARS AND ONLY GOT BACK SIX MONTHS AGO! PLEASE TELL, WHERE ARE WE GOING, _**THIS TIME?**_ _**(Chinese)**_

* * *

Woah! I never expected it to get this long, so I'm going to have to do a split! Deanna's story here has to be my favourite section, her being my favourite Old Keeper and all, plus I feel her pain with mothers putting you in ridiculous outfits… What is your favourite section?

Next up, the Old Keepers are FINALLY united; we see snippets of their training and their fights with Radcliffe and Co. Are you looking forward to it? I know I am!

_**-Review!**_


	28. The Keeper Den Part 2

What a time it's been since I last updated, hasn't it?

A useful tip for you readers: DON'T use a metal-tipped umbrella when there's lightning out. Trust me on this one. Getting struck by lightning hurts like a bitch. Holy hell, I'm lucky to be alive… _*shudder* _I never want to go outside in stormy weather again…

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

The Keepers were in the main part of the Den talking as the Old Keepers were in another part.

"Well their stories certainly have been interesting…" Bridgette said, making bubbles idly.

"I know. It is amazing how similar to us they when we were young. Say, I wonder what it will be like when it's our turn to tell our tale…" Gwen mused.

"But that's so far away!" Lindsay exclaimed.

"Besides, we haven't even done our job of giving Radcliffe a permanent smack down yet!" Heather said.

"I think it's time to get back to what happened in our time, isn't it?" Vesta said, re-emerging into the room with the others.

* * *

"Okay, that was weird…" Vesta and Deanna said in unison, still staring at the spot that their predecessors had disappeared from as time resumed.

"So, about that Star…" Deanna said.

Vesta held it up.

"Amazing little piece of jewellery, isn't it?" Deanna said.

Vesta nodded. "Never thought I'd see the day when I'd see magic jewellery…"

"_And this Link thingy is really cool too. Hey, even when I'm grounded, I'll still be able to talk to you!"_ Deanna thought.

Vesta jumped.

"_It will certainly take some getting used to…"_ Vesta replied once she recovered.

"_I wonder when the other girls will arrive…" _Deanna said as they walked to their homes.

"_Me too."_ Vesta replied. _"And I do hope we get along or this whole Element thing is gonna be one big mess for us all…"_

* * *

A few weeks later, Vesta and Deanna were sitting together in a shop when the chime indicating that someone had entered rang.

Most of the people who had glanced up to look at the new arrival looked away pretty quickly, but Vesta did not.

She was holding the Silver Star with both hands and it was beginning to glow a bright blue.

"Deanna- look at this!" Vesta poked Deanna.

"Hey! Why are you pok- oh." Deanna looked at the Star and then glanced up at the new arrival- the girl that the Star started glowing at the presence of.

She was a tall, black girl with her hair in a pixie cut and she had come in with a younger boy and girl, obviously her siblings.

She completed her purchases and distributing some of the bags to her siblings, all three left the shop quickly.

Vesta and Deanna looked at one another and then their eyes followed the girl out the door.

They immediately bolted up and ran out the shop, getting several strange looks.

Vesta and Deanna followed the girl for a while until they reached an apartment complex.

"_What do we do?"_ Asked Deanna.

"_I don't know! We can't just go up to her and say: "Hi there! We've been following you for a while. Did you know that I have the power to control an Element? And guess what? You do too!"_ Vesta exclaimed, exasperated.

Then a new voice came in that startled them both. _"Who are you and why are you in my head?" _The female Jamaican-accented voice asked.

They jumped.

"_Well?"_ The voice asked again, somewhat impatiently.

"_Well this is going to be kind of hard to explain…"_ Vesta thought.

"_Not weirder than you being in my head, is it?" _The voice asked.

"_True…"_

"_Can you meet us at the park in a few minutes? We'll explain everything there." _Vesta said.

"_Already there."_ The voice said, closing the Link.

A few minutes later Vesta and Deanna arrived at the park and were waiting for the girl to arrive.

"What do you think she will be like?" Vesta asked.

"Who knows?" Deanna shrugged.

"Um, hello there…"

Vesta and Deanna turned to see the girl behind them.

"Oh hi, er- what is your name?" Vesta asked.

"My name's Marissa, Marissa Bryan. I recently moved here from Jamaica."

Vesta and Deanna looked at each other for a moment.

"_I have seen that the other three Keepers will join you in your country, here in your city, soon."_ They remembered Alice saying.

"Well, Marissa, the deal is that we've somehow been granted the ability to control an Element." Vesta started.

Marissa's eyes grew wide.

"Let's walk somewhere that no one can see us. It's probably not a good idea to discuss this in the open." Vesta led them over to a more deserted section of the park.

"If we can really control Elements then, what are your powers?" Marissa asked curiously.

"Well, I was given the Energy element." Vesta said, demonstrating by forming a small orb of energy in her hands.

"I got Earth!" Deanna exclaimed, levitating a small chunk of Earth in front of her.

"I see." Marissa said simply, demonstrating her power by making a small water sphere and manipulating it into different shapes. "But if there are supposed to be five of us, then where are the other two?"

"We have no idea. Alice- that's my predecessor just said that the three of you would be joining us here in Hamilton soon." Vesta said.

"Well I for one hope they get here soon so we can all start training." Marissa said. "I want to meet this Elizabeth and get my powers under control."

"Agreed!" Vesta and Deanna said in unison.

* * *

Vesta, Deanna and Marissa were now walking together at school discussing their last class before school ended.

"And I used to think that I liked Math before!" Marissa exclaimed.

Vesta and Deanna looked at each other, then at Marissa weirdly.

"What?" Marissa asked, puzzled.

"You actually _like_ math?" Deanna asked in shock.

"Yes…" Marissa said. "Vesta, why are you so shocked? You're good at it too!" Marissa said, staring at her.

"Doesn't mean I have to like it…" Vesta trailed off as an Asian girl walked past.

"What?" Deanna asked her.

The star began glowing a bright white which Vesta stuffed quickly into her backpack to hide the glow.

Marissa and Deanna stared after the girl in wonder.

"_There goes the Air Keeper…"_ Deanna commented.

"_What do we do?"_ Marissa asked.

"_It's a good thing that school's over! Follow that girl!"_ Vesta pointed after her and they followed.

They followed her and turned a corner to see that she was sitting on a bench in the school's courtyard writing furiously.

The three girls hung back peeking around a wall, watching her.

"_Do you two usually make a habit of stalking people like this?"_ Marissa asked.

"_I sure hope we don't…"_ Vesta said.

They saw the girl get up, looking around as if she had just realised something.

"What is she doing?" Vesta wondered.

Marissa and Deanna shrugged.

"_You tell me. You're supposed to be the leader after all…" _Marissa said.

The girl got up and walked away briskly.

"_COME ON!"_ Vesta said.

They went in the direction she had gone, only to find out that she had disappeared.

"Where did she go?" Vesta asked aloud, scratching her head.

"HELLO!"

"AAH!" Vesta, Deanna and Marissa jumped.

They looked behind them to see the girl leaning against the wall, arms folded, smirking at them.

"Ha, ha! Your reaction was too funny!" The girl was doubled over in laughter.

While Marissa and Vesta were looking at her in disbelief, Deanna glared.

"But seriously though. Why were you following me?" The girl asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Haven't you been able to do weird things lately?" Vesta asked.

The girl regarded them suspiciously.

"I mean, something- things actually, that you've never been able to do before?" Vesta said.

"_Like this?" _Marissa asked.

The girl got a startled expression on her face.

"_What? Where did? How did you get into my head?"_ She thought.

"I'm thinking that's because you're a Keeper." Deanna said aloud.

"And what exactly would a 'Keeper' be?" The girl snapped.

Vesta sensing Deanna starting to get upset stepped in. "Before I continue, we should probably introduce ourselves. I'm Vesta and Sour-Puss over there-" Vesta pointed to Deanna. "-is Deanna."

"And my name is Marissa." Marissa introduced herself.

"Okay then. I'm Akari Fuijiwara and I moved here from Japan. Now what's with all the weird talk?" She asked impatiently.

"You see Akari, we've each been given an Element to wield and it seems that you've been given the Element of Air." Vesta explained.

"How did you know that?" Akari asked, surprised.

Vesta plucked the Star from her backpack and showed to her.

"You see, Akari, I'm the Keeper of Energy and this little thing here, this Silver Star helps the Energy Keeper track the other Keepers when necessary. This Star led me to you." She said as it glowed bright white as Akari gazed at it.

"I guess it's all true then…." Akari lifted her hand and swept it forward, causing a small gust of wind to blow around them.

"So if you're energy, then what do Marissa and Sour-Puss do?" Akari asked.

Deanna caused a tree vine to smack her in the head. _Hard._

"Hey!" Akari exclaimed.

"There's your answer." Deanna said, smirking.

Akari cursed under her breath in Japanese.

"Oh I'm sorry. I didn't catch that. What was that about me being a "fucking bitch"?"

Akari looked startled.

"How the hell did you understand me?" She asked in surprise.

"_I understood too!"_ Marissa exclaimed in surprise.

"_Me too!" _Vesta said.

"Okay then, you two just met. WAY too early to be in a fight. I'm Marissa by the way." Marissa put herself between the two angry girls.

She glanced over at Vesta who was holding Deanna back.

"I think it's time for us all to go home and cool off…" Vesta said, staring Deanna away.

"I quite agree." Marissa did the same for Akari.

* * *

Aideen was with her family in their house, helping to pack their things away in the kitchen.

"Aideen, where did you put that bread?" Her mother asked.

"Top left cupboard, middle shelf." She said without glancing up.

George and Alexander suddenly came bolting in.

"Mum, mum, guess what?" They asked in unison.

Molly rolled her eyes at their antics. They were adults now, why did they keep acting like this?

"What?" She asked exasperatedly.

"Rodney's got a girlfriend!"

Both Aideen and Molly dropped what they were holding.

"Already?" Aideen sputtered. "But we've only been here a few weeks!" She said in surprise.

"That's more than I can say for you, Aideen Mackenzie. You haven't even made any friends yet!" Molly exclaimed. She paused as something dawned on her.

"You were spying on him and his girlfriend, _weren't you?_" She asked suspiciously, turning to the two males.

"Maybe…" Alexander said mischievously.

Aideen got the bread that her mother had taken down and began slicing.

The door to the kitchen slammed in suddenly and there stood Rodney looking angry.

"I need some Scotch…" He said.

He looked up and saw his brothers trying to sneak away.

"YOU!" He roared.

Alexander and George ran off laughing hysterically as Rodney chased them.

Molly rolled her eyes.

"Boys." She said.

Aideen was putting bread in the toaster and rested her hand on top of it.

"Mum how much toast do you-"

The toaster suddenly burst into flames which managed to reach all the way to the ceiling.

Aideen and her mother screamed and ran out of the house, followed by her brothers.

Meanwhile, Vesta, Marissa, Deanna and Akari were walking down the road talking.

Or rather, Marissa and Vesta were talking and Deanna and Akari were glaring at one another.

"So it's been a while since you found Akari. Only the Fire Keeper is left. I wonder when you will find her…" Marissa wondered.

"Soon, I hope. I just want to get this training thing over before I make something explo-"

Then they saw a burst of flame erupt from a house down the street and the Star began to glow bright red.

"That was convenient…" Deanna remarked dryly.

They ran forward and they saw a short girl with shockingly red hair in hysterics. The rest of her family, three young men and an older woman, all blond stood near her, trying to comfort her.

"But how did that happen? I set the toaster on _fire!_ How the bloody hell did I set the toaster on _fire?_" She wailed with a Scottish accent.

The other four girls looked at one another.

"_The Fire Keeper?"_ Vesta asked.

"_The Fire Keeper."_ The other three replied in unison.

The redheaded girl looked directly at them with a strange expression on her face.

"_Do you think she heard us?"_ Akari asked.

She began walking towards them.

"I think she did…" Vesta walked towards her.

The girl tilted her head and examined them for a moment before quietly asking: "Who are you?"

"Well, um, hi." Vesta and the others eyed the fire truck behind the girl that had just come around the corner and was starting to put out the fire.

"My name's Vesta, and this is Deanna, Marissa and Akari…" She pointed to each as she spoke who gave a little wave.

"That fire there in your house… That was no ordinary fire, was it?" Marissa stepped forward.

"What are you talking about?" the girl asked, raising an eyebrow. In the background, the flames were now out.

"I understand if you don't want to take a walk with us now because of, well, you know…" Vesta said nervously, nodding towards the house.

The problem was somehow resolved for them when the girl's mother spotted them and briskly walked over.

"Deenie, why don't you take a walk with your _friends _while I talk to the firemen?" Her mother practically shoved her off.

"'_Deenie'?" _Deanna raised an eyebrow.

"It's Aideen. Only my mother is allowed to call me Deenie, okay?" Aideen said.

"Okay then." Vesta said.

"My guess is that you're the Keeper of Fire." Vesta said.

"What exactly does that mean?" Aideen asked.

"Well, you see…" Vesta led them to the park where they all sat on and around a bench there.

"Each of us were given a power over an Element. I got Energy." Vesta made an energy ball in her hands.

"I can control Water." Marissa made a bubble.

"I can control Earth." Deanna flicked her hand and the grass began to grow slightly.

"And I am the Keeper of Air!" Akari exclaimed, making a small tornado in her hands.

Aideen watched this in amazement.

"I am not alone in this?" Aideen asked surprised.

They all nodded.

"Thank goodness!" Aideen wiped her eyebrow. "I **FINALLY** have someone who knows what I'm going through!"

"When are we going to meet our trainers?" Aideen asked.

"Right now."

They all looked around, startled to see their predecessors behind them.

"When did you get here?" Deanna asked in surprise.

"About five seconds ago…" Saveeta answered.

"I called her here when the Star found Aideen." Vesta explained.

"Oh…"

"Now, let's get down to business, shall we?" Alice clasped her hands together.

* * *

"And that, ladies, is how we met." Vesta said.

The Keepers sat there in silence before bursting out.

"Woah, Akari and Deanna really hated each other's guts from the get-go, didn't they?" Heather asked.

"Why did you hate each other so much?" Lindsay asked.

"To say that our personalities clashed a lot would be a mere understatement." Deanna said.

"Yep. I was the nice, free-spirited girl with a great sense of humour and Deanna? She was one of the grumpiest people I had ever met." Akari paused. "Scratch that. She WAS the grumpiest person I met in all of my travels!" She exclaimed.

Deanna glared.

Vesta rolled her eyes at this.

"You wouldn't believe the fights those two would get into. And by fights, I mean both verbally AND physically!" She exclaimed.

"I remember them all right…" Marissa said.

"Brutal they were…" Aideen shuddered.

"Okay then. Can we get back to the story now?" Deanna asked impatiently.

"Ashamed that I kicked your butt every single time?" Akari asked, smirking.

Deanna glared.

"Okay, I think this is the perfect time to continue…" Vesta said.

* * *

Sometime later, they were all in Mora, shortly after transforming for the first time and examining their fairy forms.

"Ooh, I like the new wings!" Vesta glanced back at her silver crescent-shaped ones and flapped them slightly. "And the outfit isn't so bad either!"

"It's not a dress! Thank goodness, it's not a frumpy dress!" Deanna said in relief, examining her outfit and her green maple-leaf shaped wings.

"I certainly like mine!" Akari exclaimed, hovering slightly above the ground, examining her outfit and her white butterfly-shaped wings.

"I like it. It isn't obstructive, good for movement, as it should be…" Marissa examined her tear shaped, bluish, transparent wings.

Aideen looked at her outfit and the ground and flew up hesitantly, testing her light-orange heart-shaped wings. "I like mine, I think. It's cute." She smiled slightly.

"Cute will not help you kick Radcliffe's ass." Emily said curtly.

"Gosh, I hate that bastard's guts…" Janessa shuddered.

"Well then, let's go teach these girls to kick ass and take names while they're at it!" Saveeta exclaimed.

"AGREED!" Their predecessors high-fived before walking off with each of the girls.

* * *

"Now, Vesta, the first thing that Belinda taught me was how to master electricity. It's the easiest to manage. Now do like this."

Alice held her hands in front of her and they crackled with electricity. She swiped it to the side and the lightning flew off her hand and disintegrated a tree.

"Wow." Vesta said in awe.

"Yes, I know. It's pretty awe-inspiring. Now you do it." Alice said.

"Wait, wha-" Vesta's mouth opened in shock. "I do NOT think that I'm ready! I blew up a light bulb for goodness' sake!"

"Oh come on Vesta! Electricity is easy to master! It's the advanced stuff like celestial energy that you should worry about!" Alice said, making her hands crackle again.

"Okay then. Why don't you just try 'catching' then?" Alice propelled it at her.

Vesta caught it on the edge of her fingertips and managed to send it back to Alice, who made it disappear.

"Good job." Alice clapped. "Now why don't you try conjuring it on your own?"

"Okay then… Normally I'm so confident and self-assured but this is kinda shaking my nerves…" Vesta said nervously.

"Honey, this would shake anyone's nerves." Alice said bluntly.

Vesta successfully fired it off, disintegrating a rock.

* * *

Marissa and Elizabeth were out in the water.

"Well there, pretty young protégée of mine, my favourite move is kind of basic, yet always reliable: the water whip." Elizabeth formed one in her hands.

"That actually looks pretty cool to me." Marissa said, shrugging.

"It is." Elizabeth sent it out towards her and she caught it and sent it back.

"That was pretty good, Marissa!" Elizabeth smiled.

"Thanks." She said, making her own from scratch and lashing it out to Elizabeth who caught it and made it disappear.

* * *

"Come on, sweetheart, you can do it. You have to try!" Emily encouraged Aideen, holding out a fireball.

"But what if I can't?" Aideen wailed. "I make things explode! Why would they choose little me to be the Fire Keeper, I can't handle it! Why couldn't I have been something easier, like the Keeper of Bunnies?"

"Keeper of Bunnies? That would actually be fun! But you have been chosen to be the Keeper of Fire and you're gonna have to learn how to do it." Emily folded her arms.

"Who the hell does the choosing anyway?" Aideen asked.

"Look, Aideen. You can do this. Trust me!" Emily rested a hand on her shoulder and flamed up the other hand.

Aideen glanced at it, then up at her mentor's reassuring smile and hesitantly held out her hand and tried to do the same.

It worked.

Aideen jumped up and down squeeing.

* * *

"Look here, Pigtails. I'm gonna let you know from the get-go that I won't stand for any nonsense while I'm training you." Saveeta paced up and down in front of Deanna whose eyes followed her every move.

"There will be no goofing off, no hi-jinks when I'm training you. My Nani Parvati took no crap from me and although I'm not your grandma, I certainly expect no crap from you. Got it?" Saveeta asked.

"I would expect nothing less from someone training me." Deanna smirked.

"I think I may just like you. But we will reserve judgement for now. Try catching this!"

Saveeta made a fairly large boulder emerge from the ground and flung it at Deanna who used her magic to catch it and flung it back.

"Decent catch." Saveeta commented. "It could be done better, but okay for a start."

"I don't want okay, I want better than okay!" Deanna insisted.

"Now that's what I want to hear!" Saveeta grinned mischievously.

* * *

"This is actually pretty fun!" Akari was sitting on top of an Air dome and riding it everywhere… until she smacked into a ledge and fell off.

"You okay down there, Akari?" She called down.

"Quite fine, thanks." As Akari flew back up, she brushed herself off.

"That was mastered pretty quickly…" Janessa said in surprise.

"I had a small bit of control before I left Nagoya." Akari explained.

"Remarkable. Simply remarkable, Akari. I'm sure you don't know how to make tornadoes though. _They're_ pretty hard to control."

"Try me." Akari grinned.

Janessa smirked mischievously before sending a tornado her way.

* * *

"I can see how your predecessors influenced your training styles…" Heather remarked dryly.

"Indeed. They were not just our trainers/mentors, but great influences on our lives as well." Aideen smiled.

"But they were always breaking up fights between these two…" Vesta pointed at Deanna and Akari.

* * *

The girls and their trainers were at the meeting point chatting before going back to Earth.

"Well girls, how was your first training session?" Vesta asked.

"It was pretty good. I learnt the basics fairly quickly. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be…" Marissa said.

"It was the opposite for me. I mean, look at my eyebrows!" Aideen pointed to her eyebrows, or rather, where her eyebrows were _supposed _to be, since they were singed off. "How will I explain _this _to me mum?"

"It was great." Deanna's eyes were practically shining, even though the rest of her was completely covered in dirt.

"Deanna, how did you managed to get yourself so completely covered in dirt?" Akari wrinkled her nose.

"What? I like the dirt! My parents didn't even like me do _gardening _because they feared I'd get dirty. _GARDENING,_ for goodness sakes!" Deanna exclaimed.

"Their assumptions weren't very far off…" Vesta said, eyeing her dirty friend up and down. "Your parents will have a fit if they see you like that!"

"Nothing wrong with getting a little dirt on you, Akari!" Deanna flicked some dirt onto Akari, who screamed out, horrified.

"Oh come on! That was just a little dirt. Not like… _**THIS!**_" Deanna smirked mischievously.

And with that, Deanna caused a whole pile of dirt to cascade over Akari's head.

Akari screamed out in rage and tackled Deanna to the ground.

Vesta watched the two tumble around with a resigned look on her face, Aideen looked rather horrified and Marissa just rolled her eyes and watched them with a bored expression.

* * *

While the Keepers and their predecessors were in the Den talking, Alana was at her house throwing darts at a picture of something.

"You gotta keep your focus, Alana. You must focus! They're responsible for your mother dying! If they didn't do what they did, you would have had more time with-"

She stopped for a moment when she saw the gem on the bracelet that Radcliffe had given her flash brightly.

_He was summoning her…_

"I will be back tomorrow to throw more darts into your face, _you…_" She spat. "But for now, I have a job to do."

With that, she cast a spell on the poster to change it into an ordinary dartboard, put the bracelet on and left.

When she got there, she saw Nero, Xuamine, José and Courtney were also there.

"What's with them being here?" Alana thumbed them over her shoulder.

"Progress report first and then I have a story to tell. Why don't you all have a seat?" Radcliffe swiped his staff and enough chairs appeared for them all to sit in.

"So José, I have not heard from you in a while. What say you?" He asked, leaning forward in his seat and clasping his fingers together in front of his face.

"Well, I have been targeting those that feel dissatisfied with their current position on the respective planets. As Nero and Xuamine would well know, some of the vampires of Spectra feel that they have maligned by the royal line by not allowing them to 'drink' from their natural prey, not even from criminals on death row."

"True, that! I can't remember the last time I had a nice, long drink of human blood!" Xuamine exclaimed, eyes flashing red.

"Most of the others are fine with that, but we most certainly are not!" Nero said angrily.

"And then there is the matter of my brother being in a relationship with the queen. We all know mind control or manipulation can't work on him for some reason, so that option's out…" José said.

"As for Erendor, some of my sources tell me that Demetrius' brother Ramon has the hots for a certain two Keepers' granddaughter, Kimberly. She however, will not give him the time of day. Should we perhaps find a way to exploit that?" He asked.

"Certainly!" Radcliffe slouched casually in his chair.

"I'm almost on Kimberly's side with that. Everyone knows Ramon is a Casanova! She probably thinks he wants her as his next conquest…" Alana shrugged.

The others in the room except for Courtney looked at her strangely.

"What? I'm on your side, but I have my standards!" Alana exclaimed.

"Me too. Lying, cheating scumbags deserve more than scorn!" Courtney said, eyes glowing black.

"Enough about that! Today, I'm going to be telling you about a certain Melanie Renaldi." Radcliffe said.

Alana narrowed her eyes. "Then why call me? I already know that the Keepers killed my mother. What more is there to know?"

"Plenty…" Radcliffe slouched back even further into his chair and told his tale.

* * *

"So, Radcliffe what is our next move?" Melanie Renaldi asked impatiently. Alana looked exactly like her, except that Melanie had blue eyes and her hair was just past her shoulder.

"Patience, Melanie. Our next move will come soon." Radcliffe reassured her. His hair back then was even longer than before, he didn't have it in a ponytail and he did not have his scar yet.

"My husband is getting suspicious of me. I have done my best to conceal the fact that I work for you, but apparently it is not enough!" She said, annoyed. "Besides, my daughter just turned three and since most of my time is divided between here and my other _legitimate_ work, I barely had time to spend with her!" She raged.

"Relax, Melanie! And you need not worry about your little one. Once my plans succeed, your daughter will have all she ever wants and so much more…" Radcliffe reassured her.

She eyed him weirdly. "Yeah, sure. Now let's get down to business, shall we? I am a business woman, I hate wasting time. Time is _money._"

"And that is why I am sending you to Caillin tomorrow. King Siouan and his wife Brenda have invited the Keepers to the celebration of the birth of their son, Alaric."

"You don't want me to kill them and the young prince, do you?" Melanie asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No. Killing is not necessary... _at least for now…_ There will be important officials and business leaders from all the planets there. This could be a vital opportunity to get information that we would not have otherwise."

"No need to tell me that." Melanie rolled her eyes. "Norville and I already have our outfits picked out and a babysitter lined up to take care of Alana while we're gone…" She smirked mischievously.

"_Perfect…"_

* * *

_Back with the Keepers…_

"I wonder about that prophesy- the one Tiana's grandmother Queen Brenda made, remember?" Izzy said.

"That's right! That prophesy did say that we would be the ones to defeat him!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"But what I want to know is, how did he become aware of this prophesy? Are prophesies of this nature, especially those made by royalty usually common knowledge?" Gwen asked.

"To answer your question, no." Vesta answered. "The infamous Melanie Renaldi is the one responsible for Radcliffe's being aware of it. There was a celebration going on because she and King Siouan's son, Tiana's father Alaric had just been born."

"So everyone's there was having a good time and all that jazz, when Brenda whispered to her husband what she had seen. I, with my sharp hearing managed to hear it over the noise. Trouble is, _she_ heard too." Akari added.

Deanna spoke next. "Yep. She put up one hell of a fight to get away and she did- for a little while, the little cu-"

"Okay, Deanna!" Vesta put up a hand to stop her.

The Keepers laughed.

"And so begins the next section of our story…"

* * *

"Come on, Aideen! Lighten up and let's have some fun!" Akari said, dragging out the reluctant girl out onto the dance floor. Or at least trying to.

"I'm not going out there! I can't dance!" Aideen said, worming out of her grip and moving away from her.

The Keepers were all there, dressed up for the occasion.

Vesta was wearing a pink, princess type gown and had her hair curly and held back with a white headband.

Deanna on the other hand, staying true to her aversion of dresses and skirts, had worn a dark green, near black formal pants, a white dress shirt and a tie that matched the pants. She had let her hair down from its usual two pigtails.

Marissa wore a long sleeved maroon dress and had her hair up in a puff.

Aideen was wearing a light peach short-sleeved dress with a sash around the middle which formed a rose on the left side.

Akari, who was wearing a gold patterned navy blue qipao and had her hair up in a bun, got odd looks from Vesta and Deanna.

"What?" She asked quizzically.

"Aren't you Japanese?" Deanna asked.

"Yes…" She answered, puzzled.

"But aren't those qipao things _Chinese?_" Vesta asked, equally puzzled.

Akari rolled her eyes.

"Just because I'm not Chinese doesn't mean I can't wear a qipao. And in case you've forgotten, I've _lived_ in China before…" Akari said. "Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'll try to get Aideen here to loosen up and have a bit of fun. Come on Aideen! It's a party! With DANCING! This has got to bet the best party I've ever been to- and it's all for a baby! "

And with, that, maintaining a firmer grip on Aideen that last time, she dragged her out on the dance floor and began twirling her around.

"Oh Akari!" Marissa chuckled.

She, Vesta and Deanna were watching the people on the dance floor. Alyssa was doing some sort of lively dance, which Jamilah and Hasim were both laughing at. Marcus and Nasira on the other hand were looking at her strangely.

"Nasira, let's dance!" Hasim led her out onto the dance floor and a small smile appeared on her face as they too, began to dance.

Marissa suddenly picked up on a random thought in the room. _"All these stupid people are talking about are boring, unimportant things! There's nothing useful here that I can carry back to Radcliffe. NOTHING! This is getting boring…"_

"_What was that?" _She thought.

"_What was what?"_ Vesta thought back.

"_I overheard a thought- not sure who it's from though. Someone here is working for Radcliffe!" _Marissa said.

Vesta and Deanna glanced over at her worriedly.

Then they noticed Akari and Aideen walking over to them. Aideen looked quite flushed and flustered whereas Akari looked quite fine.

"Woo! That was fun!" Akari exclaimed.

"Remind me never to go dancing with you ever again…" Aideen muttered.

"Why the long faces?" Akari asked.

Marissa told them what she had heard.

Akari paused for a moment and glanced over at where the King and Queen were talking in hushed voices.

"_I saw it! Something really important! We must tell the Keepers now!"_ Brenda whispered.

"_Are you sure of what you have seen?"_ He asked, hesitantly.

"_Positive!" _Brenda whispered back.

"Girls, I think we ought to have _a little chat _with the monarchs. They have something to tell us." Akari nodded towards them.

The girls walked over.

"Your majesties, I believe you have something to tell us?" She asked, as soon as she had reached them.

They glanced at one another worriedly before heading off into another room.

Melanie, who had been dancing with her husband at the time noticed them moving out quickly.

"Mel, are you okay?" He asked her worriedly.

"Just fine, Norville, _heh-heh…_" She said nervously. "Excuse me; I have to go to the bathroom…" And with that, she slipped away, leaving him behind, looking worried.

* * *

"What's the matter?" Vesta asked.

Brenda and her husband looked at one another nervously.

"When the nannies and I went back upstairs to put Alaric to bed after we presented him, I suddenly had this vision."

"What was it about?" Deanna asked.

"I saw into the future. The next generation of Keepers- your successors, well, I couldn't see clearly who they were, but they were standing over Radcliffe's dead body."

She looked up at them with wide eyes.

"Your successors are going to be the ones to kill him once and for all!" She exclaimed.

The Keepers gasped and looked at one another in shock and couldn't speak for a moment.

"What?" Aideen was the one to break the silence. She had gone rather pale.

"_WHAT?"_ Melanie thought, eavesdropping from the next room. _"Some real news, finally! Now I need to report back to Radcliffe!"_

Marissa was with the others with a strange expression on her face.

"What's the matter with you, Mar?" Akari asked.

"Someone's eavesdropping on us. I can hear their thoughts. The same person whose thoughts I heard earlier."

The Keepers grew serious expressions on their faces.

"Spread out! That person has to be nearby!" Vesta commanded.

"No need. _That person_ is right there." Marissa pointed to Melanie, who was trying to sneak away.

"GUARDS!" Siouan yelled.

Melanie looked around at them startled and broke off into a run.

The Keepers transformed and went after her.

She ran into a corridor next to the main hall and Vesta fired an energy blast at her, which she dodged that blasted a hole in the wall, which Melanie ran through.

The guests began screaming as Melanie ran through the room, knocking people out of her way and firing spells at the Keepers at the same time.

She cast a spell on a nearby sound system and it flew into the air and almost hit Deanna.

"YOU!" She screamed in fury.

She conjured a metal disc and threw it at Melanie. It missed, slicing through a nearby column instead, making it tumble to the ground.

Some of the guards escorted the King and Queen out while some of them went to Alaric's nursery with the nannies and brought him out to safety as well.

The Immortals were doing their best to help the other guests get out as well.

Norville was watching all of this with a heartbroken expression on his face.

"_I have to get to Alana before The Law does. If they do, they'll take her away from me! I can't lose her! I've already lost Mel!" _He thought sadly as he disappeared.

"DON'T LET HER GET AWAY!" Vesta yelled.

"I don't plan on that!" Akari said, getting Melanie caught up in a tornado.

Melanie screamed and struggled against it, cursing loudly.

She struggled to cast the next spell, but when it did, it knocked Akari out of the air, breaking Akari's hold on her.

"You okay?" Vesta flew down to check on her while Aideen and Deanna continued chasing after her.

Akari glared at her.

They got up and resumed the chase.

Marissa tried freezing her, but she dodged that as well.

She fired off a spell so powerful that the force of it knocked Marissa back into a wall, and knocked her out.

She fell to the floor, but not before Deanna conjured something soft for her to land on.

"That's for exposing me!" She said, before disappearing.

"MARISSA!" The Keepers flew towards her and tried reviving her.

"She's gone?" Aideen asked, looking around.

Vesta looked around quickly.

"She isn't here." She said. "But I think that Radcliffe's personal assault can't be far off, now that he has this information…"

* * *

"Most eventful dance I'd ever been to…" Deanna commented, back in the present.

"And it left me with the worst headache in the history of forever when I woke up…" Marissa said, frowning.

"Wow. Just… Wow..." Bridgette said, stunned.

"I felt the same way when I woke up…" Marissa said.

"_Aideen, you had said that something had happened to you when you were fighting Radcliffe. What was it?" _Izzy thought.

"_Something worse than death…" _Aideen shuddered.

The Old Keepers looked at her.

"Aideen, are you alright?" Akari asked concernedly.

"No, not really. Because I know what's coming next…" She said quietly.

"I- oh." Akari's eyes dawned in realization.

"What is it?" Lindsay asked.

"Well, you see, Lindsay-chan, when we were fighting Radcliffe himself… Let's just say that Aideen got the worst of it…" Akari explained nervously.

"Aideen, are you ready for this?" Vesta asked, clasping her hand.

"Absolutely. It happened years and years ago. It's nothing that should affect me anymore. Besides, it's how I met William, isn't it?" She smiled slightly.

"That's a very optimistic way of looking at things…" Heather commented.

"So William is your husband, isn't he?" Izzy asked.

Aideen nodded, smiling even more.

"When can we meet the rest of your families?" Lindsay asked.

"You can meet them _after _Heather wins that contest. I for one know that Amelie is one of her biggest fans. Total Drama airs in France as well and she watches it every time it's on!" Deanna said.

"Vanessa and her brothers love it too, but they're rooting for Cody. The show airs in the U.K. as well and Jane only started watching it because you girls were on it, but she's rooting for Heather to win as well." Vesta said.

"Haru, Gina and Rika don't care much for reality TV either, but Hiroshi and Hitoshi have been addicted from day one." Akari rolled her eyes.

"Nadia isn't into it that much either…" Marissa said. "All the others are though. Kimberly especially."

"And she and Talia are at war over it." Aideen sighed. "Kimberly wants Heather to win, but Talia wants Cody to win…"

"But it's not time to talk about our families. We need to get this story over with…" Aideen sighed. "And the sooner, the better."

* * *

The Old Keepers were all locked in a fierce battle in Xenia, with several monstrous looking creatures which surrounded them.

Aideen was in the air, and with a sweep of her hand, she completely annihilated several of the monsters with her Element.

Deanna was sitting on a large boulder in the air, giving commands to her golems.

"That's right you guys! PUNCH THEIR DAYLIGHTS OUT!" She shouted.

"Do you like shouting, Deanna?" Marissa asked, wrapping a water whip around a group of them and throwing them into the distance.

"YES!" She and Vesta yelled in unison as the later sent a lightning bolt through an entire row of minions.

Akari nearby spun herself into a tornado and used it to blow some of the creatures off a cliff.

"YEAH!" She cheered. "Monsters 0, Akari 1!"

"Don't cheer yet, Akari!" A pale-skinned man who wore a long-sleeved, hooded cape who had brown eyes and dark green hair which slowed slightly under the hood spoke up.

"We still have a long way to go!" He continued.

"That's true Roth, but I can't be a pessimist all the time, can I?" She said, blasting away a creature that tried to attack her from behind.

"No she can't, not at all!" A short woman with messy dark brown hair and violet eyes punched out a creature as she spoke.

"**Thank you,** Taren!" Akari said.

All of sudden, on their right, a bunch of their fighters were blasted away in a blast of orange-brown light.

"Oh shit. The Big Bad himself has arrived…" Deanna said from on top of her boulder.

When it cleared, Radcliffe was standing there alone, twirling his staff and looking quite unperturbed, fired random spells at people who screamed and ducked out of the way which instead hit some of the surrounding buildings, leaving large, smoking holes in them.

"Hey Raddy!" Deanna called.

Radcliffe narrowed his eyes at her hand fired a spell which blasted the boulder she was sitting on to pieces.

"Now that's just rude." Deanna pouted.

"You're hardly one to talk about being rude, Deanna!" Akari exclaimed.

"NOT NOW, YOU TWO! SAVE YOUR STUPID QUARRELS FOR ANOTHER TIME!" Vesta roared.

"Sorry! Jeez." Akari rolled her eyes.

"So, I see you ladies have almost decimated the forces I had attacking Wispera. Haven't you done enough? Killing my best ally Melanie Renaldi was _not_ a good idea…" He said, eyes glowing.

"What? We fight to kill now." Deanna shrugged.

"And so do I, Earth Keeper, so do I." He smirked before firing off spells in random directions, blasting random people.

Vesta blasted him back with an energy ray.

He staggered before getting up again.

They all noticed this.

"_Getting weaker, maybe? Immortals are supposed to be absolutely impervious to injury and illness!" _They thought.

Aideen flew forward and almost got him with a flaming dragon but he did a backflip, narrowly avoiding it.

"Now, now, Fire Keeper, don't get like that with me!" He said, firing a spell at her, but Aideen managed to burn it away with a fire blast

"You're nothing but a bully, _Raddy. _A big, ugly bully!" She exclaimed.

The others were watching stunned.

"Someone's getting too big for her ankle boots." He said, looking annoyed.

"I just realized that I have to stand up for myself and stop letting bastards like you push me around!" Aideen roared, furious expression looking quite unsettling on her.

"_WOAH!"_ the others thought.

Radcliffe himself looked surprised as he remembered the parallels between this and his conversation with Anacaona centuries ago.

"_My, my. Dear, little, timid Anacaona has finally grown up!" Radcliffe taunted her._

"_I just realized that I have to stand up for myself and stop letting bastards like you push me around!" Ana replied, furious…_

He composed himself.

Aideen turned herself entirely into flame and flew towards him.

Before he could react, she had created a large slash-burn on the left side of his face.

"DOUBLE WOAH!" The other girls exclaimed.

Radcliffe howled out in pain and fury. _"What just happened? I'm not supposed to be able to get hurt, especially not by this freckled little brat!" _He thought.

When he stood back up, burn mark and bleeding looking grotesque on him, he looked even scarier. "Like Deanna- said, I fight to _kill._"

With that, before anyone could say or do anything, he had used a spell to grab Aideen, which crushed her tightly, making her too weak to hold her form and she detransformed.

"Aideen!" They screamed, but Radcliffe blasted them back.

And with that, he threw her over the side.

"See you in fifty years, ladies!" He laughed as he disappeared.

"AIDEEN!" Akari, the second Radcliffe had disappeared, flew over the side of the cliff and found her there, badly injured from the fall, and not moving.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Aideen! 死んではいけない！死んではいけない！" **(1) **Akari panicked.

"We gotta get her home!" She called up to the others, who were flying down.

"Oh my gosh." Marissa's eyes widened in horror.

"What do we do?" Akari asked, panicked.

"I'll take care of it." Jamilah had flown down next to them in the form of a hawk and resumed her usual form next to them.

She did a quick check on the Scottish Fire Keeper.

"She is alive, but only just." Jamilah surmised. "We shall take her home. You will need an excuse for why she is so gravely injured to explain to those you know there..."

"I'll do it!" Akari and the others went ahead.

Hours later, Aideen was in a hospital on Earth, in a coma, hooked up to several machines and surrounded by her family, with her friends, her fellow Keepers standing in the background.

"Aideen Marianne Mackenzie. You had better pull though this! You're my youngest! My only daughter!" Molly cried.

Indeed, everyone else looked as if they wanted to cry.

Just then, the doctor and a young man who was training to be a doctor and was attached to him came in. The younger man looked only a few years older than the girls, his hair was dark blonde and his eyes were a deep shade of green.

"Will she be okay?" Her mother asked, perking up.

"She won't wake for a while. She has internal bleeding and actually fractured several bones in her body, among other injuries. It, quite frankly, doesn't look too good…"

Aideen's brothers and the Keepers glared at the doctor as their mother burst out into tears again.

He adjusted an IV and went outside.

"Don't mind him. Your friend will be fine." The younger man said to the Keepers aside.

"How do you know?" Deanna snapped.

"Trust me, I know, _Keepers…_" He said, changing a nearby magazine into a single sheet of paper.

And with that, he walked away, leaving the girls looking after him in a state of shock.

* * *

"So, let me get this straight. That doctor-in-training, was magic and he ended up being your future husband?" Bridgette said, surprised.

"That's right!" Aideen said. "William Robinson, doctor-in-training at the time became my eventual husband!"

"Talk about earning a happy ending and freaky coincidences…" Heather muttered.

"_Only sorry it came about the way it did though…"_ Aideen thought.

"And the way you slashed Radcliffe like that. THAT. WAS. AWESOME!" Izzy exclaimed.

"And trust me, for all the evil things he did to you and others, he is going down" Gwen vowed, a steely look appearing in her eye.

* * *

**(1**) Don't be dead, don't be dead!

* * *

And the Old Keepers' Day In The Spotlight is officially over! If you have more questions, let me know in your review!

Also, I have ideas in my head for a possible sequel when this is done; the problem is that I am not sure whether or not I can pull it off… So, what would you, my dear readers think of a sequel? Should this story stand alone, or should a sequel be attempted? It would probably affect how this story ends so…

Review everyone!


	29. Awwwwww, Drumheller

I'M SILL ALIVE, PEOPLE! Sorry about the long gap between updates, you know, Real Life and all that jazz…

HyperForce has updated his gallery with a picture of Radcliffe. Go check it out people!

In addition, one of my various e-mail addresses is now up on my profile! Feel free to shoot any e-mails my way!

And I'd love for all you lovely lads and ladies reading this to go and edit the TV Tropes page for this story, the link to which is on my profile! Edit the character sheet, edit the subpages, do whatever you can to make it bigger! _Pretty please?_

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"_They suspect me! I know it! But what do I do?"_ Alejandro thought as he sat on the other side of First Class away from Heather, who was asleep.

"_I highly doubt that this photoshopped picture I did will be any good…" _Alejandro thought, looking at a photoshopped picture of Heather and Cody together in Loser Class that he had done moments ago.

"_But then again, Sierra isn't known for being particularly intelligent, just like her mother. They both could rival Izzy in temperament…"_ He shuddered.

"_I'll still keep this picture though. Just in case…"_

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"Now that I am a few episodes away from winning, I need to up the ante. I cannot let that mental patient Sierra, that weakling geek Cody or that evil, conniving, _beautiful _distraction Heather make me lose sight of winning. By any means necessary if I have to…" He smirked.

* * *

Alejandro walked into the kitchenette area of First Class and actually began cooking.

"_Another one of my fantastic skills…"_ He thought.

A while later, he finished up the pupusas he made and carried the plate back to the seat next to Heather where he sat and began to eat.

Heather awoke, yawned and stretched, looking grumpy.

"Ugh! That was _not_ a First Class sleep!"

"Buenos dias, Heather! Would you like a delicious pupusa to start the day?" He offered her the plate.

She scoffed. "No! As if I'd ever accept anything from _you!_"

"Well then, more for me. You know, you have been rather… quiet about me lately… No insults, no zany schemes to get me eliminated…" Alejandro commented.

"Do _not_ mistake it for me liking you. I'll have you gone faster than you can say 'Lady Gaga'." Heather leaned back in her seat and checked her nails.

He twitched. "Never say that name in my presence again." He seethed.

"Lady Gaga, Lady Gaga, Lady Gaga. There. What are you going to do?" She taunted him.

"Stop saying it!"

Heather took her iPod out of her pocket, found the song she was looking for, pressed the earphones into Alejandro's ears and pressed the Play button.

"AH! Make it stop! Make it _stop!_"

Heather merely turned it up louder.

"AAH!" Alejandro ran off, eyes watering.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **He twitched a few times before speaking. "I hate that woman. And Heather too…"

**Heather: **"You know, torturing Alejandro with that song was actually pretty fun! I should do it more often…" She smirked mischievously.

* * *

In Loser Class, Cody fell asleep on Sierra's lap and was muttering things in his sleep.

"Of course I'll marry you, Gwen! Oh, Sierra? She had quite a bad roller-skating accident. Don't worry your pretty head about-"

He woke up suddenly, screaming and fell off the bench.

"What are you doing?" He asked, startled.

"You were having a horrible nightmare! Come; let me hug it away from you…" Sierra said in a creepy tone.

He inched away. "Okay then… I don't really need a hug…"

"Oh come on! Everyone needs hugs!" She exclaimed.

"I'm fine." Cody insisted.

"Oh well. It doesn't matter anyway. All that matters is that I'm here with you on the best day of the year! I hope you like surprises, 'cause have I got a surprise for you!" She pinched his cheek.

"F-from you?" Cody started to feel scared.

"Oh don't worry! You'll like this one! I'm making you something _very special…_" Sierra giggled.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Cody: **"If it's a surprise from Sierra, I'm not quite sure I'd want to know what it is. I mean, who knows what it could be, given her past track record?" He shuddered at the thought.

* * *

"Hello there Sierra. How are things with you and Cody?" Alejandro asked, leaning against the wall outside the general kitchenette.

"Don't even attempt to manipulate me Alejandro. Everyone here can see through your flimsy façade. And I'm sure the viewers at home aren't rooting for you either." Sierra folded her arms across her chest.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have plans. I have a secret surprise I need to engineer." She said, holding up the bag she was carrying.

It shook and made growling noises, which made Alejandro eye it wearily.

"_Okay then…" _He thought.

"Is that so? Well perhaps this picture will change your plans _and _your mind!" He exclaimed, whipping out the picture he had printed earlier.

Sierra snatched it from him and her eyes widened in surprise.

"No. _No way..._" She said in shock. "This isn't right! It can't be true! Where did you get this picture?" She asked.

"Don't you worry your purple-haired head about that, Sierra. Just remember. _Focus._ If you help me get Heather out of the way, then you can have Cody _all to yourself…_" Alejandro put a hand on her shoulder.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **She sat there with a deadpan expression on her face with her arms folded and clutching the picture tightly. "How stupid does he think I am? Anyone can tell that this was Photoshopped just by looking at it! Besides, when do _I_ ever leave Cody alone, huh? When?" She took a deep breath.

"That creep is going _down._" She ripped the picture in half and had a scary look on her face.

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere in the sky en route from Toronto to Hawaii on a small private plane the contestants were chattering excitedly.

"WE'RE GOING TO HAWAII! WE'RE GOING TO HAWAII! WE'RE GOING TO HAWAII!" Izzy squealed in excitement, running up and down the aisle.

"This is gonna be so much _fun…_" She said, doing a backflip off the top of Duncan's head and landing in Owen's lap. She kissed him briefly before she went off again.

"AHAHAHAHAHA!" She yelled.

The pilots in the cockpit heard the noise and went wide-eyed, before the chief one grabbed the microphone to speak to the cabin.

"Izzy, will you please sit down before you do to this plane what you did to the one in Paris?" He asked, sounding scared.

The other contestants on the plane had varying expressions of horror on their faces at the thought.

"_IZZY! SIT DOWN!"_ Gwen yelled telepathically.

"Okay people!" She sat calmly into an aisle seat behind Gwen and Duncan. Lindsay and Tyler were further in the back and Bridgette and Geoff we seated across from her.

"I'm thirsty!" Izzy declared. "Time for a drink!" She exclaimed, whipping a bottle of soda out from nowhere.

"NO!" The contestants yelled.

Eva leapt for the bottle of soda and snatched it out of the redhead's hands before she could even take a sip.

"No sugar for you! If you can run around like that without sugar, you definitely don't need this. They might call me 'Iron Woman', but I certainly wouldn't survive a plane crash!" She said, throwing it aside, where it spilt on Noah's head.

"Great. Just great." He huffed as he went away to clean himself up as best as he could.

"_Come on, Izzy! Why do you always insist on acting like a lunatic?"_ Gwen asked tiredly.

"_Maybe because I AM a lunatic, and I'm proud of it too, baby!"_ Izzy declared.

Gwen sighed. _"Why did the lunatic have to get the Fire Element?"_

"_We wonder that every day, me and the others…" _Vesta replied.

* * *

"Welcome to Drumheller, Alberta! A World Heritage Site! It has the wickedest collection of dinosaur bones _on the planet!_"

"_Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever. I can get all of this information in a fact book. Get to the damn point so I can win and kick Alejandro's ass already!"_ The other three contestants thought in unison.

"So, I need you all to grab whatever bones you can find to make your own life-sized dino. I'm calling it..."

"_Wait for the incredibly lame pun…" _Heather thought.

"…Design-asaurus!"

The contestants all groaned.

"They should pay me to come up with titles! I'm THAT good!" Chris smiled smugly.

"That was extremely LAME!" Heather exclaimed.

"My grandma could come up with a better pun than that!" Cody exclaimed.

"Oh come on! That sucked!" Alejandro waved a hand dismissively.

"Are there classes for making puns? If so, you probably should get some major remedial ones…" Sierra suggested.

Chris growled.

"CHEF!" Chris called.

"WHAT?" He yelled back.

"ARE MY PUNS REALLY THAT BAD?"

Chef answered by laughing loudly.

When the remaining contestants saw the sour expression on Chris' face, they burst out laughing.

"You've got two minutes to go through the cargo hold and grab whatever supplies you need to help with your creation. Now get to it!"

The four contestants immediately took off.

"I'm gonna get there first!" Sierra exclaimed.

"I don't think so, Rapunzel Hair!" Heather replied.

"Excuse me ladies, I do believe _I_ will get there first." Alejandro ran alongside them, _backwards._

Heather concentrated and managed to make a little of the earth come up behind him and he fell flat on his back.

She and Sierra snickered.

"Have you forgotten about me?" Cody called, waving to the girls as he bypassed them and reached the cargo hold first.

"How the hell does that little shrimp run so fast?" Heather wondered aloud as she and Sierra finally reached the cargo hold.

"_Watch it."_ Sierra growled a warning.

Heather rolled her eyes.

Sierra squealed when she found a bunch of craft supplies.

"Glitter glue, stickers and even puffy paint! YAY!" She jumped up and down, clapping in excitement.

Heather rolled her eyes.

"We're building dinosaur replicas, not helping some grade three brats with their silly little art proje-"

She was cut off by Sierra squirting purplish-pink glitter glue all over her face.

"You talk too much." Sierra said simply, carrying the box of supplies out.

Heather simply stared after her in amazement, before snatching what looked like a giant white sheet out of Cody's hands.

"Hey! That was my- Never mind…" Cody faltered off after he saw Heather begin to wipe off the glue with it.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **She wiped off the last of the glitter glue and tossed the sheet aside. "ME? Talking too much? Sierra telling ME that? Isn't that a bit hypocritical?"

**Sierra: **"HI MOM!" She waved to the camera. "I'm having so much fun here! And this dinosaur challenge is going to be so easy to do! I already know what I'm going to do for it!" She paused for a moment. "Or maybe I don't… Either way, I'm going to figure something out! After all, how hard could it be? Certainly not harder than the time when-"

* * *

"I thought you could do with a visual reminder of what you are playing for, Sierra. Here, have a few copies." Alejandro held out copies of the picture to Sierra as she dug up a bone.

"_What an idiot…"_ Sierra thought.

She snatched them away from him and tore them into pieces in a rage.

Alejandro, thinking that this rage was directed towards Heather and not him, snickered in his thoughts.

"_What an idiot…" _He thought as he walked off.

"Alejandro is going down. I will _spare no mercy…_" She snapped the bone in two merely by gripping it.

* * *

"Now, let's see… Can I use these for my dino?" Cody examined the rocks that he was holding.

"Hey Cody! Look what I brought you! A very helpful T-Rex bone!"

Cody eyed the tiny bone sceptically. "Heather, that's the bone from a T-Bone steak…" He pointed out.

"Oh. T-Rex, T-Bone, what the hell does it matter? All I wanna know is that Alejandro is going to be the one tossed out of the jet today!"

"I agree. It's time for him to go. But if you want to beat him too, shouldn't you be getting to work on _your_ dinosaur?" Cody raised an eyebrow at the Earth Keeper.

"True, but like I said before, I want Alejandro gone and I never thought I'd say this but…" Heather sighed. "If it means helping out the competish once in a while, then that's what I'll have to do…"

"Well I certainly won't object to you practically giving away the competition..." Cody smirked.

"Oh please. Don't get so full of yourself. This _help_ ends as soon as he is gone. Then we can go back to hating each other again."

"But I don't hate you…"

"Oh please. Everyone hates me. Even my fellow Ke-" Heather stopped herself in time. "You don't have to pretend because of you-know-what. Me, I don't really care who hates me. Haters gonna hate, after all…" And with that, Heather walked off.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Cody: **"I don't particularly like Heather, but I don't really hate her either. I guess I'm neutral where she's concerned. I might not seem like it, but I do want Alejandro gone just as much as she does…"

* * *

"WE'RE IN HAWAII! WE'RE IN HAWAII! WE'RE IN HAWAII! This is going to be really fun, you guys!" Izzy exclaimed, leading the Total Drama cast out of the airport all of whom were wearing leis (hers was pink!) around their necks. The Fire Keeper was also carrying bags that bulged in the oddest places.

"Does she ever stop screaming?" Gwen (who was wearing a white lei) asked Duncan (tearing his red lei to shreds!), who was walking alongside her.

They looked at one another weirdly.

"Should have known better than to ask." She shrugged.

As they all boarded the bus, the driver handed Bridgette two fairly large binders. She took a look at the covers and handed one to Geoff.

"Details for the next Aftermath and the finale, among other things." She explained to him.

"Hey everybody!" Geoff yelled.

No one paid any attention to him as they were either too busy admiring the new surroundings, chatting with friends and in Izzy's case, just being a flat out crazy fruit loop.

Bridgette and Geoff looked at one another.

"_Lindsay, would you mind getting everyone's attention on me and Geoff?" _Bridgette asked the Air Keeper telepathically.

"_Sure!"_

Lindsay ahem-ed before yelling.

"_**HEY EVERYONE! BRIDGETTE AND GEOFF ARE SPEAKING SO SHUT THE HELL UP!"**_

Everyone turned to look at her weirdly.

"**Thank you,** Linds!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"Ouch." Gwen said, rubbing her head. _"Couldn't have given me a warning, could you?"_

"_Me too!"_ Izzy complained. _"My eardrums feel like they've been ruptured!"_

"Now everyone, the next Aftermath here in lovely Hawaii…" Geoff started.

He was interrupted by cheering.

Lindsay turned around to glare at them and they all shut up, not wanting her to shout again.

Geoff continued. "…is going to take place in a week's time where we will be joined by the next loser which I'm sure we all hope is _Alejandro…_"

Most started booing at the mention of the evil teen's name. Courtney, of course was the most noticeable exception, who leaned back in her seat, the only one occupied in that row and examined her long nails which she had grown out since she joined Radcliffe.

Gwen glanced back at her and the two locked eyes, glaring at each other.

Their glaring match was only interrupted by Bridgette speaking again.

"Now rooming arrangements. Pass these down, will you?" Bridgette handed out some papers.

"Hey! Why do you and Geoff each get a room to yourselves?" Courtney asked, raising an eyebrow at the paper she held.

"Because, _Courtney, _we're Aftermath hosts. You're not. Haul that stick out of your butt and get over it, won't you?" Bridgette said in a flat tone.

Everyone who wasn't in on the secret turned to stare at her.

Courtney didn't say a word.

"Now let's get going, shall we?" Bridgette said.

"Hit it, driver dude!" Geoff exclaimed.

The bus sped off.

* * *

"Okay contestants! Time's up! Show me what you've got for your dinosaur creations! Alejandro, why don't you go first?"

Heather growled under her breath.

"_Patience, Heather. You will beat him. Now is not the time to try any of your Earth tricks with him." _Deanna said.

"_Huh? When am I supposed to try any Earth tricks with him then?" _Heather wondered. _"And who are you to talk about patience?"_

"_Never you mind that. Point is- play aggressively. Don't let him get to you. I don't want you just to beat him, I want you to win the whole contest!" _Deanna replied, closing off the Link.

"HEATHER!" Chris shouted.

She jumped.

"Quit the daydreaming and present your dino creation!" Chris exclaimed.

"Were you daydreaming about me?" Alejandro teased.

Heather snickered. "You wish." She sauntered over to her dino and presented it.

"The Chris-ceratops is one talented beast and a real hit with the ladies!" Heather had to bite back a gag as she said it. "You like?"

"Like? More like LOVE! Best looking dinosaur here!" Chris clapped.

Heather rolled her eyes.

Back at the plane, Chef who was watching it on a flat-screen TV, roared with laughter.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Chef Hatchet: **"WO HO HO HO!" He roared with laughter, laughing so hard, he cried. "Chris being the best looking here? Looking like a dinosaur maybe… But then again, that would be an insult to the dinosaur…"

* * *

"Sierra, let's see what you've got!" Chris said.

Sierra gestured to a dinosaur that had a triceratops's skull, a pterodactyl's body, had glitter and streamers all over it and was also wearing a colourful party hat.

"This is the Partysaurus Rex! It's a species that loves to have a good time and is always the life of the party!" Sierra grinned.

"Interesting." Chris examined it.

"What's the occasion this time?" Cody asked curiously.

"Why it's celebrating your birthday, of course!" Sierra exclaimed, jumping up and down in excitement, Cody in her grasp.

"Wait- my birthday? It's really my birthday? Wow, I totally forgot about that!" He exclaimed.

"How do you even forget _your own birthday?" _Heather asked in shock, but no-one answered.

"I could never ever in a billion years forget your birthday- the best day ever. It should be declared it a national holiday!" Sierra squeed.

"Did you remember his birthday Heather?" Sierra asked.

"He's lucky I remember his name!" Heather rolled her eyes.

"_Who the hell forgets their own birthday?" _Alejandro wondered.

"Thanks, Sierra. I really mean it. I don't even remember the last time somebody remembered it was my birthday…" Cody trailed off.

Chris stood there rolling his eyes .

"Enough with the mush people. It's Judgement Day! And we're going to have very special judges- you!"

"_**HUH?"**_

"That's right! You guys are going to judge your own creations, but with a pretty _shocking_ twist, of course! What would this show be without them?" Chris asked.

"Humane?" Sierra suggested.

"Less torturous?" Heather added.

"NOT Sociopathic?" Alejandro contributed.

"Not so insanely hard to compete in?" Cody asked.

"True, but then it would also be less funny to watch and where's the fun in that, I ask you?"

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather:** Her arms were folded across her chest and she had a deadpan expression on her face. "The fun in surviving maybe?"

* * *

Heather eyed the battery attached to the lie-detector machine wearily. "What's with the giant supply of electricity that's basically attached to my head? Suppose I get brain damage from that thing!"

"You won't- if you tell the truth, that is." Chris chuckled.

"This is without a doubt, one of your better ideas…" Heather rolled her eyes.

"Why thank you!" Chris said as the machine shocked her.

"Sarcasm does NOT count as a lie!" Heather exclaimed.

"Sure it doesn't… Anyway, it's time to vote for your favourite dinosaur. Let's get started, shall we? Heather, what's your vote?"

"Well, I do like Sierra's… It has a lot of glitter on it. I really like glitter! I have a whole secret collection of the kind that comes in pens! Don't judge me!" Heather exclaimed.

"Trust me, we all are judging you." Chris said.

After going through the other three contestants' votes, Sierra was declared the winner of the first part of the challenge.

"Sierra, for winning this part of the challenge, you get this handy dandy post digger!" Chef came over and handed it to her.

"Use it well, crazy one." Chef said.

"Trust me on this one Chef, _I will…_" Sierra held it up and grew a mischievous look on her face.

Everyone there eyed her wearily as she turned it on.

"Hi Alejandro…" She said in a demonic tone.

His eyes widened.

"_**AIE YI YAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" **_Sierra leapt at him with the post digger.

"Oh, crap! AAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Alejandro ran off screaming as Sierra chased him around with the lethal, oversized tool.

"I know I should be really creeped out by this but I'm not…" Heather said in amazement. Cody nodded in agreement.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **He was extremely tattered looking and sported a few scratches. "I'm guessing that she somehow found out about the pictures… Why does it feel like I'm losing my touch?"

**Sierra:** "Chasing Ale-Jerkface around with the post digger was oddly satisfying…"

* * *

"The interns were supposed to bury these barrels full of maple syrup, sugar, spiders and rattlesnakes, but they buried my _***CENSORED*ING **_oil instead!" Chris fumed, knocking the barrels stacked next to him, which began to shake and have hissing noises coming from it.

Everyone including Chef and the interns eyed them wearily.

He shoved one over and the interns ran for their lives as angry rattlesnakes and tarantulas fell from the barrel and rushed at them.

"For coming in second, Heather gets this rusty old prospector kit." Chris tossed them to her.

"And the Codester gets a plastic shovel and pail!"

"How exactly am I supposed to dig up a barrel of oil with these?" Cody asked, puzzled.

"That's nothing compared to what Alejandro's getting!" Chris chuckled.

"What _am_ I getting?" Alejandro asked suspiciously.

"NOTHING! HA HA HA!" Chris gloated.

Alejandro twitched.

* * *

**Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: ** "Would it be so wrong for me to want to _kill _Chris right now?"

* * *

"Whoever get back here first with a barrel of _my_ oil wins immunity!" Chris said.

"But there must be twenty square miles of Bad Lands! It's like looking for a needle… in twenty square miles of Bad Lands!" Cody exclaimed.

"And I forgot to mention- we'll be pummelling you with the occasional boulder. Funny, right?"

The contestants just stood there, glaring at him.

"Now go get my oil!" Chris blew his whistle and the contestants ran off.

* * *

Heather came across Alejandro digging in the dirt with his bare hands and stood there, watching and smirking slightly.

"Nice to see you working hard!" Heather commented.

"Thanks. I always do."

"Hitting on ladies and coasting on their work is hard?" Heather asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't you have things to do?" Alejandro began to grow irritated.

"Wanna borrow my killer pickaxe?" Heather asked tauntingly.

"_Really?"_ Alejandro looked hopeful.

"You know what? It's probably against the rules. And besides, it's rather fun seeing you here digging in the dirt. You're not usually a last place kind of guy…" Heather said, her smirk growing bigger.

"Good bye Heather." Alejandro grew even more annoyed.

"You know, I would go, but watching you like this is really fun!" Heather exclaimed.

"**LEAVE ME ALONE!" **Alejandro stood up and yelled.

Heather stood there looking unimpressed.

"Oh please, was that supposed to scare me off?" Heather pointed her pickaxe at him. "You'll find that I'm not so easily scared _by my shadow far less yours…_" She walked off casually, humming the song 'Alejandro' under her breath.

Alejandro twitched when she started to hum but then froze in place with a sort of horrid realization. Heather's last comment… _"my shadow far less yours…" _left him unnerved.

"_Does she know about my allegiance to Radcliffe?" _He paused, but then shook it off. _"Nah, she couldn't. No one could unless they had a spy in our midst and what are the chances of that?"_

And with that, he got back to digging.

* * *

"So Sierra, I know you're angry at Alejandro because of him trying to manipulate you and all, but whatever did he do to make you attack him with a piece of heavy machinery?" Cody asked, genuinely curious.

Wordlessly, Sierra handed him a copy of the picture that Alejandro had photoshopped.

Cody frowned as he looked at it. "You don't actually think this picture is real, do you?" He asked.

"Of course not! Anyone could tell that it was edited- and rather badly at that! But it just goes to show what he'd try to do to ruin our relationship and set up Heather…" Sierra growled, putting her pole digger to work.

"Oh look! It's a barrel of oil!" Sierra exclaimed happily as the post digger hit something.

"Great! Let's get it out and you can help me look for mine. One of us has GOT to get back to that plane first before Ale-Jerkface does and get that immunity!" Cody exclaimed.

"You bet!" Sierra high-fived him.

* * *

Heather was walking along, using her powers discreetly to help her locate where a barrel of oil might be.

"_Hmm… If I can find a change in the density of rock somewhere, that probably means that something's buried there…"_ She thought.

She kept walking until she suddenly felt a change in the earth beneath her.

She dropped her pickaxe in surprise.

"_Definitely something here. I'd better-"_

She paused as she heard something rumbling in mid-air.

When she turned to look, a giant boulder was coming right at her.

Heather barely managed to get out of the way before it landed, crushing her pickaxe.

"Great. Just great… Now what the hell am I supposed to do?" She wondered aloud in exasperation.

"_Use a little super strength perhaps?" _Deanna suggested.

"_Huh?"_

"_Heather, you have super strength. Use it on the boulder!" Deanna said._

"_But won't people be suspicious if the skinny chick is suddenly strong enough to lift a boulder over her head?" _Heather wondered.

"_Psh. No worries there! There have been stories of NMB'S who lifted heavy-ass vehicles to rescue their children trapped under them. This will be the same principle!" _Deanna exclaimed.

"_You know, that actually makes sense!" _Heather said in surprise.

"_Of course it does!"_ Deanna closed the Link.

"Well, this barrel isn't going to dig itself up and I certainly won't get it without getting that boulder out of the way so…" Heather stood there for a minute trying to decide what angle to lift it from.

"Okay, so if I lift if from around here…" She walked behind the boulder and inched it up bit by bit, before rolling it off into the distance, where it knocked Chris over.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Heather wondered aloud.

She looked down at the pickaxe, which miraculously managed to survive the boulder falling on it.

"Now let's get to work!"

* * *

"I did it! I made it here first!" Sierra cheered as she rolled up her barrel.

"Congratulations, Sierra! You've just earned yourself immunity Come join us for the final three barbeque! You've earned it!" Chris said.

"Thanks, but I've got bigger fish to fry." Sierra ran over and grabbed a burger off the nearby table and paused to put condiments on it.

"In the form of cake!" She exclaimed, taking a bite. She gave Chef a thumbs-up before running into the plane.

"Weird as hell…" Chef commented.

Chris nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I don't get her either…"

* * *

Sierra was in the kitchenette putting the finishing touches on her cake, humming happily to herself.

"Put a candle here, here and… here! There! I'm done!" She smiled, taking a few steps back to admire her creation from afar.

"Okay, people! It's time to vote! Let's get this thing started!" She heard Chris' voice over the intercom.

"OH! Gotta go!" She grabbed the cake and rushed outside with it, _forgetting that she had left the oven on…_

* * *

"Happy Birthday, Cody!" Sierra presented the cake to him gleefully.

"Gee, thanks." Cody took a slice of it. "And it's chocolate too, my favourite!" He savoured it with a smile on his face.

"And you can have some too if you want Heather!" Sierra handed a slice to the Earth Keeper.

"Um, thanks." Heather ate the cake slowly, making sure that there weren't any foreign bodies in it…

"And Ale-Jerkface over there can't have any!" Sierra snarled.

Alejandro went wide-eyed as he looked at her vicious expression but then shook it off.

"Psh. It's not like I'd want any, anyway!" He waved her off.

"Okay then. Why don't you _**have a slice?**_" Sierra threw a chunk of the cake at him, which splattered over his face and shirt.

* * *

In Hawaii, the contestants there had finally gotten to the hotel, found their rooms and unpacked.

Chattering excitedly, they headed down to their new lounge, which was an outdoor poolside area which resembled the original Playa Des Losers, but in a more tropical sort of way.

The large, flat-screened television was on the far end of the courtyard around which cushioned beach chairs were placed.

"Well, we didn't make it in time to catch the entire episode live, but at least we can catch the elimination!" Bridgette said, longing in a chair next to Geoff.

"And we finally get to see Alejandro go down. I can't wait for that to happen!" Gwen said, she too getting comfortable in a chair.

They all settled down and Geoff used the remote to turn on the television.

There they saw Chris holding up a tray of marshmallows with the passports stacked beside them.

Sierra already had her marshmallow in hand and was chewing on it happily.

"Heather, you are also safe, having gotten no votes!" Chris tossed the next one to her.

"Yes!" Heather cheered and popped the marshmallow into her mouth while giving Alejandro the V sign with her pinky finger.

"So, who does the last marshmallow go t- Wait, what's that smell?" Chris smelled the air.

A glimpse inside the plane revealed that in the kitchen area, the stove that Sierra left on was now ablaze and smoking heavily.

"Oh dear…" Lindsay muttered worriedly.

All the animals in the cargo hold (and Ezekiel!) ran screaming from the plane as the flames burst forward.

Chef rushed forward, grabbing a couple of fire extinguishers along the way, but before he could reach it-

_**KABOOM!**_

The plane exploded into smithereens, sending everyone flying through the air.

"_**HOLY SHIT!" **_Everyone at the resort yelled in shock.

"_Heather, are you okay?"_ Gwen asked.

* * *

"_Do I look okay, Gwen?"_ Heather snapped, hanging over a boulder with a piece of one of the wings of the jet covering her.

She threw it off and sprinted towards Sierra who had been thrown even farther back than she had.

"What the hell just happened?" She asked.

"What happened is that when you used the stove in the plane earlier, you forgot to turn the DAMN THING OFF!" Chris roared. "You destroyed my plane! My lovely beautiful plane!" Chris wailed.

"Oh boy…" Cody tapped his fingers together nervously. "What's going to happen now?"

"I'll tell you what's going to happen now! SIERRA'S OUT OF THE GAME!" Chris roared.

"WHAT?"

"_Yes!"_Alejandro cheered internally.

* * *

In his castle, Radcliffe was watching all of this with a serene expression on his face.

"Hm. Alejandro has failed me. The only reason he is still there is because of the mistakes of Princess Sierra. He is losing his touch and I can no longer depend on him. Let's see how he fares without any help, shall we?"

"He isn't going to get very far is he?" Alana asked.

"He most certainly will not…" Radcliffe smiled a slasher smile that creeped even Alana out.

* * *

"What do we do?" Alyssa asked worriedly.

"Leave them for now. I know it looks bad, but Samuel is already there to help them." Nasira said.

Jamilah nodded in agreement. "He will be able to handle this. We shall leave it to him and only go if he calls us."

"Pretty sure that Radcliffe isn't very pleased with his lackey right now…" Marcus commented.

"True. But let's confer with Vesta and the others, shall we?" Hasim suggested.

* * *

And there goes another chapter! If you missed the song, feel free to make up one of your own because I actually found writing the song harder that writing the rest of the chapter…

And I started another project- a Winx Club/Glee crossover. Check it out if you're interested!

Once again, review everyone!


	30. Hawaiian Style

Okay people! I am finally back! This is the best I can do, considering I'm now at university and all. I'll try to keep my maximum time between updates at three weeks, but that is no guarantee.

Also, new poll on my profile! Which of the magical worlds I have created is your favourite? Go vote!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"LET- ME- AT- HIM! I WILL GO TO EARTH MYSELF AND TEAR HIM LIMB PROM LIMB! FORGET ABOUT MAGIC!" Adara roared.

She was sitting in the private dining room of her palace, fuming. The Immortals, along with a few other officials of her planet were also present.

"Calm down, Your Highness. Stressing out will _not_ help you." Jamilah said.

"Well, ripping Chris McLean apart WOULD help me!" Adara snarled.

"Okay, Queen Adara. There is no need to fuss, none at all…" Alyssa said in a soothing tone, using her magic to help reduce Adara's anger.

"Thanks for that Alyssa, but I still want to kick McLean in the nuts for what happened to my daughter…" Adara said, now calm.

"I understand that, but you can't just go tearing off to Earth like that. You have a kingdom to rule, remember?" Alyssa said.

"Plus there is the fact- and I know you will not want to hear this, but Sierra is fully responsible for what happened to the jet. Had she not neglected to turn that stove off, this would not have happened and quite frankly I do not blame him for yelling at her. She did after all manage to make _the entire jet_ explode…" Nasira pointed out.

Adara opened her mouth as if to respond, but decided better and remained quiet.

"I need a drink…" She sighed.

"Don't we all?" Marcus muttered in agreement.

* * *

The ex-contestants were now filing into their seats on the Hawaiian Aftermath set.

"Okay people! We've got five minutes 'til show time! Bridgette, Geoff, you ready?" Wesley asked, glancing down at his notepad.

"Yep!" Bridgette and Geoff said in unison, both giving him the thumbs-up.

"Great." Wesley dashed off the set.

"Okay guys… It's show time!" Wesley announced.

Geoff nodded and the turned to the camera.

"Yo world! Welcome to Total Drama Aftermath set here in beautiful Hawaii! I'm Geoff!"

"And I'm Bridgette, safely back from Siberia thanks to the help of Travis Bryan and his team from the Canadian Consulate!" Bridgette exclaimed.

The ex-contestants cheered loudly at this.

"That's right Bridgey-bear! We're also here in lovely paradise because where else would be the most awesome place to host the Aftermath of a show that's been all around the world?" Geoff asked.

Bridgette nodded in agreement. "Indeed Geoff. Beautiful Hawaii- full of great flora, fauna and home to one of the best surfing spots in the world! But we're not here to be your local Travel Channel! But before we move on…"

A mugshot of Mildred looking messy, grumpy and in a jail uniform appeared in the top right corner of the screen.

"That's right! _**Mildred **_O'Halloran, the one responsible for having me shipped off to Siberia in the first place is now in jail for it!" Bridgette exclaimed.

Out of everyone who cheered at this announcement, Geoff cheered the loudest, jumping up and down and waving his hat in the air.

"And we've even got exclusive footage of the arrest which took place in Toronto's Eaton Centre sent in by an anonymous witness!" Geoff exclaimed.

"_Anonymous to you maybe..."_ Bridgette thought. _"Shane really got some great footage…"_

"Roll it!" Geoff yelled.

* * *

_The footage began with Mildred walking calmly through the mall carrying tons of shopping bags. Seconds later, she was tackled by several buff guys in RCMP uniforms who also wore helmets and bulletproof vests, knocking her to the floor and sending her purchases flying._

"_WHAT THE *CENSORED*? Those were designer threads! DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHO I AM?" She yelled._

"_I'm Blainley O'Halloran! Let me go!" She snarled._

"_Oh come on! We watch Total Drama too! We know your real name isn't Blainley… IT'S MILDRED! Anyway, you're under arrest for kidnapping Bridgette Summers, Human Trafficking and a whole host of other unpleasant things which when summarised basically say that you are a heartless bitch!" One of the officers hauled her up to her feet._

"_If you think I'm going to jail, you're wrong. WRONG, I TELL YOU!" Blainley got a crazed look in her eye before throwing one of the officers holding her to the ground, drop-kicking another and kneeing another where the sun don't shine before running off. All while wearing handcuffs and screaming madly…_

_By this point, everyone in the area was watching and chattering excitedly and having heard about the ruckus, people from other areas of the mall came running to see._

"_Get her!" An officer yelled._

_All the police officers chased after her and tackled her to the ground again and this time an officer tazered her when they hauled her up with suck a powerful jolt that it basically fried her hair and left her very charred looking._

"_Off we get!" The lead officer dragged her out of the mall, babbling incoherently as the other officers followed._

_At this, the entire mall began to cheer._

* * *

The ex-contestants also cheered at the ending of the video.

"Yeah, and I'm sure her prison buddies will have fun with her…" Geoff laughed a disturbing laugh before going back to his normal self.

"So, we've got all your favourite contestants in the peanut gallery! Say hello guys and gals!" He pointed to them with both hands.

Everyone waved to the camera.

"And now we're joined by our eliminated contestants- Owen, Gwen, Izzy (again!) and Duncan!"

"Hey guys!" Owen waved to the camera enthusiastically while hugging Izzy close to him.

"HI EVERYBODY!" Izzy waved even more vigorously than her boyfriend did.

"Anyway, you guys can go take your seats in the peanut gallery, 'cause you guys are about to have a HUGE say in who is gonna win the million!" Geoff exclaimed.

"GOOD! Because I have A LOT to say about that!" Courtney exclaimed. "A lot, a lot!"

"Nobody cares, Courtney!" Gwen snapped.

"Cody's gotta win the million. He's the only not evil player left!" Owen exclaimed.

"Nice doesn't always get you to win, does it?" Courtney muttered.

"That's IF he and the others live long enough to compete! They're stranded in Drumheller, where the number one cause of death… is being stranded in Drumheller!" Harold commented.

"Are we sure they're going to get here okay?" Bridgette asked worriedly.

"Relax babe! These guys are survivors! Look at Heather! She's like a Total Drama Cockroach!" Geoff exclaimed.

"I thought that was Ezekiel!" Duncan commented.

"_More like you!"_ Courtney thought viciously.

"Anyway, my point is that they're going to get here one way or another. And it's going to be exciting- however it goes down!" Geoff exclaimed.

"So… Who does the Peanut Gallery think will win?" Bridgette asked.

The television screen above them lowered and images of Heather, Cody and Alejandro appeared on it.

After _Who You Gonna Root For_ was sung (without interruption!), Bridgette introduced the next segment.

"Before the Peanut Gallery hold up their flags to show us who they've chosen to root for, let's see how our finalists stack up!"

"Who's got the best chance of taking the cashola? Let's see who might have earned it the hard way!" Geoff exclaimed.

"Cody's taken quite a beating this season, most of it from Sierra. She's made him sick as well, but she still kept him in the game!" Geoff said.

"With Sierra officially out of the game now, how will he do on his own?" Bridgette said. "BUT, let's not forget that killer right hook of his! He is the one who delivered the biggest punch of the season!"

The clip of Cody punching out Duncan in Greece played on the screen.

"I took a dive so he'd feel better!" Duncan said.

"Oh please. He punched you out and you know it. Not as tough as you claim to be, now _are you?_" Gwen raised an eyebrow at him.

Duncan looked at her in surprise, never expecting that from her.

"Maybe this indicates that there's more than meets the eye when it comes to this skinny techno geek!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"_Don't we know it?"_ Gwen thought.

Izzy and Lindsay chuckled at this.

"He's impossible to predict! That makes him our unknown quanti- Geoff, what are you doing?" Bridgette looked up at the screen to see her boyfriend doodling two braids and lipstick on Cody's picture.

"Doodling." Geoff answered.

"Stop it." Bridgette said firmly.

"Okay… Anyway, next up is Alejandro, the slime ball we all know and hate!" Geoff said angrily.

Most of the Peanut Gallery started booing.

"He's avoided serious injury all season!" Bridgette said.

"_That isn't going to last when we see him next…"_ She thought.

"Even when he was battling rabid caterpillars in the Amazon, battling alien creatures in Area 51 and even Owen's indigestion in Sweden! Plus, _raise your hand if he's the reason you're here now…_"

She, Gwen, Izzy, Harold, LeShawna, DJ, Noah, Owen and Tyler all raised their hands.

Geoff spoke again. "But he sure ain't perfect! Zeke the Ripper nabbed him before he even got off the plane in London _**and **_he took the season's most humiliating tumble in Greece. Can we see it?"

Everyone (except Courtney!) in the peanut gallery snickered at the image of Alejandro faceplanting, _**hard.**_

They laughed even more as Geoff began playing the clip back and forth in slow motion.

"At least he's actually **in** the final three!" Courtney burst out.

"He's only there because Sierra blew up the plane and got kicked out! Otherwise, he'd be right here with us!" Harold exclaimed.

"EXACTLY!" Geoff exclaimed. "Dude's got a horseshoe up his butt the size of Texas!"

Geoff doodled some devil horns, fangs, heavy eyeshadow and even nose hairs on Alejandro's picture.

"Can you at least TRY to be impartial?" Courtney snipped.

"You might want to put a pitchfork in there too, honey." Bridgette suggested.

Courtney pouted.

"As for Heather this season? She's managed to outwit and outlast albino alligators, baby birds and all the haters on her team. And everyone else, of course…" Bridgette commented.

"Nothing seems to stop her: from losing a tooth (once again LeShawna, nice work!), to getting bird slapped by an angry condor." Geoff said.

"If Cody's the unknown quantity and Alejandro is Captain Comeback, that makes Heather an unstoppable force!" Bridgette said. _"And she's the only Keeper left in the game. She'd BETTER beat Alejandro for the rest of us!"_

"How exactly is that unstoppable force Geoff?" Bridgette glanced up at Heather's picture, where Geoff had doodled on it to make Heather look like a vampire. "She looks like a vampire! _Well, not really, since I know what they look like now…_" She thought the last part.

"EXACTLY! They're evil AND undead! Totally unstoppable!" Geoff muttered.

Bridgette rolled her eyes.

"So far, the race is too hard to call. Let's go through their weaknesses, shall we?" Bridgette said.

The two hosts went through them quickly and although Bridgette did not agree with Alejandro being a weakness for Heather, she didn't say anything.

"Now here's where things get more interesting. It's time to vote for your favourite finalist!" Geoff exclaimed.

The camera panned out to show the former contestants holding up their flags with their supported finalist. Only Katie, Sadie and Courtney were on Alejandro's team, while almost everyone else was on Cody's team. Izzy had a Heather flag raised and Gwen was undecided.

"There is no way that little twerp Cody can possibly beat Alejandro! He can't even fend off Sierra!" Courtney waved a hand dismissively, flashing her long nails.

"Yeah, but she's persistent…" Owen said.

"Oh please. Alejandro blew all of you off the map. He's the best player the game has ever had!" Courtney commented.

"But Cody's the only good guy left he has to win the million dollars!" Harold exclaimed.

"Yeah, but good doesn't always win, does it?" Courtney snapped.

"That explains why you didn't win it…" Gwen muttered.

"Ah. I see you don't have a flag Gwen. Who are you supporting? _Your imaginary friend?_" Courtney taunted.

"Actually, no." Gwen walked over to golf club bag that held flags with the finalists' pictures on them.

The one she picked out and raised high into the air made everyone gasp.

* * *

They burst out chattering excitedly.

"Woah. Gwen. Supporting. _Heather?_ Never thought I'd see the day…" Geoff said, stunned.

"Scoot over Izzy, won't you?" Gwen walked over to sit next to the Fire Keeper, who even though she supported Heather, looked well and truly surprised that Gwen supported Heather as well…

"What? But Gwen? How could you? Have you forgotten the hell she put us through on the Island?" Beth exclaimed.

"Oh no. I haven't forgotten. Don't mistake this for me liking her. I just hate Alejandro more than I hate her and I think she has the best chance of beating him!" Gwen exclaimed.

"_It's still kinda surprising still…"_ Bridgette thought.

"_Yeah, I get that. But I've got to put my dislike of her behind me if we want to beat Radcliffe and his other cronies too, don't I?"_ Gwen thought.

"_True that! People won't care about me since they think I'm crazy- which perhaps I am, but that's not the point! The fact that you're doing this has shocked a lot of people!_" Izzy exclaimed.

"_Yeah, Jen. It's not like they know the real story after all…_" Lindsay pointed out.

"Wow. I can't believe it. You're taking Heather's side? You know, the one who made our lives even more of a living hell than they already were back on the Island? The bossy mean chick? Kissed Trent in front of you when you two were together just to hurt you? Exposed your underwear to the world?" LeShawna said.

"Oh shut up LeShawna. I remember what she did. I have my reasons and as I see it, I'm sure all of us here have done things that we shouldn't be proud of!" Gwen exclaimed.

"_You got that right."_ Courtney muttered.

"_Zip it, Cora!"_ Lindsay snapped.

"I still can't believe this. This is well and truly beyond the impossible." Trent said in disbelief.

"Taken up to eleven too!" Harold exclaimed.

"Enough with the trope references already!" LeShawna exclaimed. "Gwen girl, you sure you okay? Didn't hit your head after you fell out the plane in China, did you? Or since you've been spending so much time with Izzy and Lindsay lately- you sure you didn't catch a case of crazy or stupid?"

"HEY!" Izzy and Lindsay exclaimed in unison turning as one to glare at her.

"_**Enough,**_ LeShawna." Gwen said in a tone of voice that left no room for argument.

"Bridgette, Geoff, please continue with what you were saying before!"

"I think it's time for a commercial break…" Geoff said nervously.

* * *

As soon as the cameras went off, everyone burst out again.

"Seriously Gwen. It's Heather we're talking about here. HEATHER! That toothpick bitch!" LeShawna exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air.

"LeShawna calm down. You're getting too worked up about this!" Bridgette said, walking over to the larger teen.

"Calm down. You're telling _me_ to _calm down... _**I will not calm down!**" LeShawna said angrily.

"_Oh yes you will…"_ Bridgette smirked to herself as she rested her hands on LeShawna's shoulders and used some subtle magic to calm her down.

"_Smart move."_ Gwen complimented her.

"Hey and there's something else I've noticed. How come you four have been spending so much time together recently?" Justin asked.

"We have a secret plot to take over the world and replace the leaders with cheese and crackers. They'd certainly do a better job of… _**NONE OF YOUR FUCKING BUSINESS, YOU LIAR!**_" Izzy roared.

Justin ran to hide behind Trent and peeked back out, looking frightened.

"Enough with the arguing already! Does it really matter at this point whether Gwen and Izzy support Heather, who is the lesser of two evils when compared to Alejandro?" Bridgette folded her arms across her chest and raised her eyebrows at them.

"And I want to let you all know, if I weren't hosting this show, I would be supporting Heather myself." The Water Keeper continued.

"And here we expected you to be the voice of reason!" Beth exclaimed.

"She _is_ being the voice of season compared to how the rest of you are behaving…" Lindsay pointed out.

Everyone turned to look at her.

"Heather and I will never truly be friends and while I may not be rooting for her to win this contest, I can certainly see _why_ Gwen and Izzy are… Why are guys upsetting yourself over this? It SO isn't worth the high blood pressure…"

Gwen, Bridgette and Izzy looked at one another weirdly as the rest of the former contestants did the same.

"Did she just say something _smart?_" Duncan asked.

"Why I believe she just did, Duncan. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get some refreshments…" Gwen walked off, _humming happily_ as everyone watched her in amazement.

* * *

"After that amazingly… _informative_ break, we're about to take this Aftermath to a whole new level of awesome!" Geoff exclaimed.

"Take it away, Bridge!" He pointed over to Bridgette who was standing near a cliff with the other ex-contestants.

"So Peanut Gallery, it's been a while since we've all been in the game. I know we all don't miss being in it, so let's cut to the chase shall we? Today, you're going to be competing to help your favourite final three contestant win!" She asked.

The Peanut Gallery began cheering.

"And I still don't get why Alejandro has more people on his team than Heather does but that isn't going to change soon, so…"

Geoff walked over. "Glad to see that you're all so passionate about the contestant that you're supporting because one member of each team is about to risk their lives for your favourite finalist. _Any volunteers?_"

"Why do we have to risk _our lives?_" Gwen raised an eyebrow.

Courtney glanced over at her for a brief moment.

"Well I am the winningest member of my team. I'll do it!" Courtney declared.

" _'Winningest'_ isn't even a word Courtney... I'll do it for my team too, Geoff." Gwen turned to glare at Courtney who returned it.

"Team Cody? Who's your volunteer?" Geoff asked, turning to them.

Lindsay was about to move forward, but Harold beat her to it.

"I beg of you, my fellow Cody supporters to let me go forth in this challenge."

"If you're moronic enough to _want _to go on a surfing suicide mission, hey! Be my guest!" Duncan shrugged.

"YES!" Harold cheered.

"Now that we've got that settled, let's go take a look at what these final three supporters are up against, shall we?" Geoff said.

* * *

After Geoff explained the challenge, even Gwen and Courtney looked terrified.

"We're going to have to surf over a _really steep _waterfall with some of the fastest flowing water I have ever seen, on a flimsy, low-quality surfboard that could shatter into pieces at any moment _and_ avoid large, flaming rock hitting us?" Gwen exclaimed.

One of the surfboards demonstrated her point by falling over _and turning into dust._

"Yep, sorry about that. The producers wanted to _really_ up the ante now that we're approaching the finale…" Bridgette shrugged, with an apologetic expression on her face.

"Better them than us." Geoff chuckled. "Anyway, here are some pictures of animals you'll find in Hawaii." He gestured to the chalkboard behind him, which indeed had chalk drawings of animals all over it.

"_If_ you went to the Maui Zoo." Bridgette added.

"Anyway, each team must pick an animal they feel represents the true spirit of the contestant they chose to support." Geoff explained. "Gwen, which animal do you feel best represents Heather?"

Gwen took a moment to examine her options. She was fairly familiar with animal symbolism and quickly decided which animal she thought would suit Heather best.

"I'm going to go with the lion." She said finally. "Lions in general are brave, proud, noble, and powerful. Heather has all those qualities- except for the noble part."

"Not a bad choice." Bridgette nodded in agreement.

"Harold, what's your choice for Cody?" Geoff asked.

"I'm going to go with the deer." Harold said.

Everyone began laughing at his choice.

"What? The deer suits Cody perfectly in my opinion. Unperilous and gentle for the most part, noble _and _he can pack a painful punch when he needs to- right Duncan?" Harold turned to smirk at the delinquent.

Everyone else turned to laugh and point at the delinquent, who just stood there, looking pisses.

"Yeah… _Courtney? _Your choice for the…" Bridgette started.

"Slimy eel?" Noah suggested.

Bridgette nodded.

"Alejandro is _not_ an eel! He is a JAGUAR!" Courtney declared.

"Jaguar?" Geoff raised an eyebrow sceptically.

"Why not? They're fast, smart and powerful!"

"And they are also evil bastards that aren't to be trusted?" Geoff asked flatly.

Courtney glared.

"Anyway, here's the catch." Geoff rubbed his hands together in glee and chuckled mischievously.

"If you can get past that pesky lava spray with you and your leis intact, you'll have to put the lei on your team's spirit animal."

"And why didn't I see a twist like this coming?" Gwen wondered aloud, glancing down the waterfall to see that there was an intern, frightened for his life, who was trying to tie the jaguar on the raft/platform thing with Alejandro's sign on it.

"And you mocked me for the deer." Harold said to Courtney, who looked annoyed. "Never doubt my mad skills. I am always ahead of the game."

Courtney backhanded him.

"Except when you're not." She said simply, brushing off her hands. "I can totally handle the jaguar."

"Anyway… whoever gets their lei on their animal first wins a major advantage for their finalist, second place a moderate advantage and last place…" Bridgette said.

"…gets nada. Ha!" Geoff finished.

"Well, get ready guys!"

"And… go!" The two hosts exclaimed in unison.

* * *

Gwen, Courtney and Harold took off immediately.

Harold and Gwen beat Courtney to the leis.

"Mighty Lono! Thank you for this flowery blessing!" Harold held up his lei.

"Shut up and run Harold! Courtney can't win this!" Gwen said, taking off.

Harold looked behind him, only to see Courtney speed up and off with the lei.

"So long, loser!" Courtney snickered at the nerd.

"You're not winning this Courtney!" Gwen exclaimed, grabbing her surfboard.

"Oh yeah, boyfriend stealer? _Watch me._" Courtney placed the board under her and jumped off the cliff.

"Okay. I can do this." Gwen put her board under and jumped off as well.

"Heather had better win after I had to do this!" Gwen exclaimed, dodging a flaming boulder.

"_Wait, what am I doing? I can see the future. I can see where the boulders will fall and avoid them!" _She thought.

She focused and saw an illusion of a boulder falling right in front of her.

She moved across from it, mere seconds before it fell.

Bridgette, watching this on a screen up above with the other contestants, smiled to herself, knowing that Gwen could use her future-seeing powers in this challenge and technically, it would not be abusing her powers to cheat.

Harold was fairly high above the two surfing magical girls. _"I won't stand a chance against those two unless I do something!"_

He tried moving forward, but the rush of water carried him forward so fast that it almost made him collide with an incoming boulder- if it wasn't for Lindsay blowing it out of the way.

A gust of wind (not caused by Lindsay caused Gwen and Courtney to blow close together.

"I'm winning this for Alejandro! If _you _want Heather to win, then she can't!" Courtney exclaimed, pushing forward.

"Look, I've already tried apologising for kissing Duncan, what more do you want?" Gwen exclaimed exasperatedly. "You take things too far!"

"Oh? I take things too far?" Gwen raised an eyebrow. She saw an illusion of a boulder falling where they were surfing and moved out of the way.

"I don't think you'll be going too far with that lei though!" She called out.

"Huh?" Courtney said, puzzled.

She looked down to see the shadow of a boulder above her and looked up to see the flaming boulder right above her.

"Crap. AHH!" Courtney screamed as she was thrown through the air and smacked into a rock wall.

"HA!" Gwen cheered as did many others when Courtney was eliminated. At least Alejandro wouldn't get this advantage…

Harold suddenly zoomed past her.

"Sorry my fair lady, but it looks like I'm going to be the winner here." Harold said.

"I wouldn't say that…" Gwen said, surfing straight past him, doing a mid-air flip and landing on the platform with the lion, which immediately began growling at her.

"Okay, calm down, Mr King of the Jungle." Gwen held up her hands, with the lei firmly grasped in one hand.

The lion continued growling at her until something occurred to her.

"_I'm the Keeper of Energy! Who's to say I can't manipulate this big guy's energy!"_ She thought.

She stepped forward gingerly. "Easy, Simba. _Easy…_" Gwen rested her hands on the lion's mane and focused.

The lion immediately began to look drowsy.

"There we go buddy…" As the lion sank down to sleep, she put the lei around his head.

The contestants above watched this in amazement.

"I can't believe this. Gwen won!" Geoff exclaimed.

Harold suddenly came barrelling through the air and landed on the platform with the deer- on his stomach. Luckily, it landed gracefully around the deer's neck, who then began to munch on it happily.

* * *

"Okay. I do not want to go surfing again after that experience." Gwen muttered, dripping wet and covered in seaweed.

Courtney and Harold looked the worse for wear. The dark fairy had several scratches and charred spots all over her body and while Harold had the same kind of injuries; they were nowhere near as severe looking as hers.

"Where's the reward?" Harold asked wearily.

"That was pretty amazing…" Bridgette said in awe.

"Seriously! Nobody was supposed to win the prize!" Geoff exclaimed, wide-eyed.

"_**WHAT?**_" The three of them roared together, knocking the cowboy hat off his head. Geoff ran off to get it.

"Hey, don't blame us! It was Chris' idea!" Bridgette said, holding up her arms as if to surrender.

"But hey- someone did win! Thanks to Gwen, Heather is going to get a major advantage to use in the final round-a wheelbarrow!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"It'll make sense eventually." She said, noting everyone's puzzled looks as it was wheeled in by the black intern.

"As for Harold, since you were representing Cody, you get the baby carriage- which will also make sense when the final challenge comes along…" She said as the baby carriage was wheeled in by the Asian intern.

"And since Team Alejandro came in dead last…" Geoff snickered.

"Alejandro wins nada but air!" Geoff exclaimed.

Courtney growled in fury and stalked off.

"Totally not going to help Alejandro in the final round, which I'm sure we're all glad of!" Bridgette exclaimed as the non-Alejandro supporters cheered.

"Well, this is Geoff, Bridgette and the Total Drama crew saying: Aloha until the finale folks!" Geoff and the others waved to the camera as he signed off.

* * *

Courtney went to her room and retrieved the Liquid Masquerade. Gulping down the entire contents, she watched her skin heal itself and the diamond-shaped bottle refill itself.

"THIS SUCKS!" She roared.

She went to get dressed in her usual outfit and was about to storm out the door when Radcliffe called to her through the necklace.

"Tough day, huh?" He asked.

Courtney glared at the necklace for a moment. "_That _would be an understatement."

"Well you'll have a distraction. Come to my tower. There is something which you will need to see." He said.

"Okay then." Courtney smiled as she rubbed the necklace.

It glowed for a moment, before she teleported out, just in time for Eva to come into the room.

"Huh? I thought I heard Courtney's voice in here…" Eva looked around the room and shrugged.

* * *

I know in the original that a Doberman was picked as Heather's Spirit Animal but a few notes to explain the change-

_**1)**_ What would a Doberman be doing in a _zoo_ as a "display animal"? They're domesticated animals! Would you pay to go to the zoo to see a dog?

_**2)**_ I know that lions are traditionally presented as the "good guys" in fiction and Heather isn't particularly good, but I do agree that Heather shows some traits that lions are traditionally portrayed as having. There _are _exceptions to the pure good guy rule for lions (or any stereotype for that matter) so in the case of lions- _Scar anyone?_

Anyways, show some love people and review until next time!


	31. Planes, Trains and Flying Machine Things

The poll is still on my profile for which world from this story is your favourite. Go vote people!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"So, what's the deal? Why are we all here?" Alana asked.

She, Nero, Xuamine, José, Santos and Courtney were all present and seated in chairs around Radcliffe.

"Why don't you ask José that question, hmm? He says he has important news for us all." Radcliffe clasped his hands in front of his face and leaned forward out of his seat.

Everyone turned to look at the young Latino man.

"Well everyone, you know I have been stepping up my recruitment efforts across the realms and while I have gained several more recruits to our cause, we have a particularly valuable member joining the Inner Ring today." He said.

Radcliffe raised an eyebrow over his clasped hands.

"And _why_ is this person so valuable?" Radcliffe asked.

"Because you've never had a recruit like me." A voice said from the shadows.

Everyone turned to look.

A male figure stepped out of the shadows. He was extremely tall, somewhat muscular, had short, curly auburn hair and blue-grey eyes. When he took off the cloak that he was wearing, it was revealed that he wore a black leather biker-style jacket with zippers all over it and a white blazer beneath it, dark blue jeans and combat boots.

"Who is he?" Courtney asked.

Radcliffe stood up and led the young man over. "Courtney, this young man is another way for us to win this fight. He is otherwise known as Prince Ramon of Erendor."

"Damn, José, you have done well. I am impressed!" Alana looked over at him.

"Thank you." José smirked.

"Indeed. I am proud of _mi hijo_- but what are your reasons for accepting José's invitation to join our Inner Ring?" Santos asked curiously.

"A few simple desires really. I want to rule my home planet and rule it with Kimberly as my Queen. There are things standing in my way that need to be exterminated!" Ramon said angrily.

"There will be nothing in our way once we take over…" Radcliffe said in a creepy tone.

"But anyway, Courtney there is something I must show you. Come with me." He signalled for the Anti-Keeper to follow.

He led her down a series of passageways until he came to one particular door.

He fired up his staff and sent a spell at the lock, which absorbed it and made the door swing open.

"You have potential Courtney and that is why I feel that you are ready for bigger things." Radcliffe said as he and Courtney walked into the room.

In the middle of the room, there was a giant sphere divided into five sections on each for Alma, Wispera, Spectra, Erendor and Nadir, which showed the various rulers in various activities.

Alma's President Tavares was reading a book in his office, President Hunter was at a luncheon with other powerful people from her planet, Queen Tiana was at her university listening to her lecturer and making notes on a tablet, Queen Hera and King Demetrius were having lunch together while their son was acting like a typical toddler- throwing food around at the palace officials and Queen Adara was in the process of destroying anything she owned that was Chris-related.

"Wow…" Courtney said in awe.

"But that my dear is not the main attraction. You see this?" He waved his staff and a large trunk appeared in front of them.

"What is inside here is the result of several centuries' worth of magical study of the Keepers and why they always manage to beat me and my allies." Radcliffe chuckled.

He tapped his staff against the lock and opened the trunk.

A smaller, black trunk emerged from it with strange symbols in all the Keepers' signature colours all over it.

"When this trunk is unlocked, it will create a force to be reckoned with. Use it well." He tossed it to her.

The cube glowed an eerie black when she caught it.

* * *

Meanwhile Kimberly was at school- Roseville Academy in Ottawa, Ontario. The school's uniform consisted of a knee length black and gold plaid skirt, long-sleeved white shirt, a gold tie with the school's crest on it and black shoes with white socks for the girls and a white shirt, the school tie, black pants and dress shoes for the guys. Some people were also wearing black jackets.

She was standing by a locker with two of her friends- a blonde with brown eyes and a brunette with grey eyes.

"So, my birthday is coming up soon…" the brunette said.

"Yeah- happy birthday in advance, Jessica!" Kimberly smiled.

"You know that this is gonna be a great party!" The blonde exclaimed.

"You know it, Sabrina!" Jessica high-fived the blonde.

"Anyway, I wanted you two to be the first to have these." Jessica handed her friends two envelopes.

"Really? Thanks!" Kimberly and Sabrina started squeeing with their friend while the less popular people nearby rolled their eyes.

Kimberly suddenly got a sharp pain in her head.

"Ouch!" Kimberly slapped a hand onto her forehead.

"Are you okay, Kimmy?" Her friends asked in concern.

"Yeah, sure. I'm just gonna go get my cheerleading gear and meet you girls out on the field…" She waved to them and walked off.

She found a deserted classroom and pulled her phone out of her pocket and pressed a button. An Asian girl with red highlights in her wavy black hair which was pulled back into a ponytail and had bangs appeared after a while.

"Konichiwa, Kimberly! What's the pleasure of your call today?" The girl asked.

"Yeah, Rika. I need to ask you something."

Rika noted Kimberly's expression.

"Go on…" Rika said.

"Just had a magic surge- like something is really wrong out there, but I have no idea what!" Kimberly exclaimed.

Rika frowned.

"You're not the only one who felt that. Even Jane and Amelie agreed on that one and you know how they are…"

"English versus French…" Kimberly rolled her eyes.

"I'd ask mom, but she, Aunt Akina and Grandma Akari just left here to go to Pierre Elliott Trudeau- they're going to Japan together…" Rika looked grumpy at this.

"You wanted to go too, didn't you?" Kimberly said knowingly.

Rika nodded. "Just as well. They'd probably be shopping all the time- or at least Grandma and mom will… Anyway, I'll ask the others what they think. Hiroshi and Hitoshi aren't home yet, but they will be soon. I'll let you know what I find."

Rika closed off the connection.

Kimberly gazed at the phone for a moment before pocketing it and walking out of the classroom.

* * *

"The hot tub with my name spelled out in Italian tiles gone…"

"My monogrammed sneakers. Gone…"

"My custom-calibrated stubble trimmer. _Gone…_" Chris wailed.

"Okay… So can we continue the… Agh!" Heather clutched her head, as did the other magical people. "Game?" She asked.

"_What the hell was that?"_ She thought.

"Can we continue the game?" Alejandro asked, looking annoyed.

"You with all your selfish thoughts, thinking only of yourself!" Chris exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air in frustration.

Heather and Alejandro looked at one another.

"Pot calling the kettle black there, Chris…" Heather pointed out.

"Oh SHUT IT!" Chris shouted.

"It's true and you know it, fool!" Chef said, coming to stand behind him.

"What about the bigger humanitarian crisis? How am I supposed to keep this handsome face fresh without my hyperbolic chamber?" Chris whined.

"Oh stuff it, pretty boy. We got more important things to do!" Chef said, going to the pile of rubble and pushing out a large metal box.

"MY EMERGENCY KIT! I'M SAVED!" Chris ran to the box and hugged it.

* * *

**Wrecked Confessional Lavatory**

**Heather: **She rose an eyebrow. "Isn't Chris getting EVEN MORE pathetic to anyone else? At least we're ALIVE! Dude seriously needs to get his priorities straight." She rolled her eyes.

* * *

"That's right kiddos! Get ready for surf, sun and beauties in grass skirts. We're going to Hawaii!" Chris began to do a little hula dance.

"You know, I'd cheer, but how the hell are we getting there?" Heather asked.

"You're just going to have to figure it out yourself Heather. Or better yet, why don't you ask Sierra, since she blew up my _***censored***_ plane!"

"But how are we supposed to continue the competition if we can't get to Hawaii?" Alejandro asked.

"Correction: YOU can't get to Hawaii! Ha-ha!" Chris pressed a button on a remote he held and the box opened, revealing a two-seater helicopter.

"The competish this time around is about you guys figuring out how to get to Hawaii all by your lonesome!"

"But we're in the middle of nowhere!" Cody exclaimed.

"True… So check these fancy GPS systems I'm generously giving you!" Chris threw them and walkie-talkies to Cody, Heather and Alejandro.

"Hm. Middle of nowhere, Alberta. Well, at least they work!" Heather remarked dryly.

"Set 'em for Tijuana Beach. It's right on the Mexican border with the United States. Now get moving! Go, go!" Chris exclaimed.

"But what about me?" Sierra asked as the others set their own GPS.

"Make like you took the drop of shame and figure it out on your own!" Chris called as he and Chef took off in the helicopter.

Sierra glared after him.

* * *

**Wrecked Confessional Lavatory**

**Sierra: **She took a deep breath. "Okay. Mom, I know how hard it is to end a crush, but Chris is a total jerkface. When I come home, the Chris McLean museum/guestroom better be… _**destroyed…**_" She made as if to crush something.

* * *

All of the eliminated contestants that were now in Hawaii were all on the beach doing some form of beach activity.

Izzy was playing volleyball against Eva- the most ferocious of volleyball matches ever seen.

"I'm going to kick your butt in this game Eva!" Izzy jumped up and hit the ball over the net as hard as she could- knocking Eva over.

Eva got back up as if unaffected.

"Oh yeah? Well how do you like this?" Eva knocked the ball over, sending Izzy flying.

When the Fire Keeper got back up, she had a crazed (more than usual!) look in her eyes.

"Uh oh…" Eva noted Izzy's crazed look with fear in her eyes and those that had been watching the match backed up.

Lindsay was sunning herself with Tyler, Beth, Justin, Katie and Sadie.

Bridgette was surfing happily trying to teach Geoff to do the same, although he kept failing miserably, falling down every time he tried.

Meanwhile, Gwen was lounging in a beach chair, with Duncan in another beside her.

Courtney was not too far off, singing some song she had written.

"Duncan is a huge jerk and Gwen isn't much better! They're both very sucky and they both smell like- OUCH!" Courtney was cut off by a volleyball that Izzy hit gone awry smacking her in the side of the head.

"Hey! Watch it psycho!" Courtney snarled.

"You're the one who's psycho!" Izzy snarled back, throwing another volleyball at her, knocking the Anti-Keeper over this time.

All this time, Gwen was reclining there in deep thought.

"_What was that strange surge that I and the others felt earlier?" _She pondered. _"It feels like something out there is really off balance!"_

"_That is exactly how I would explain the feeling as well, Gwen." _Vesta said a worried tone to her voice.

"_You felt it too?"_ Gwen asked.

"_Yes. Marissa, Aideen, Deanna and Akari have felt it too, by all reports and by now, Akari isn't even on this side of the world. She's probably about halfway to Japan by now with her daughters…" _Vesta commented.

"_We don't know what it is yet, but we'll be checking it out. In the meantime, keep on your toes…"_ Vesta closed off the Link.

"Hey Gwen, I wanna talk you for a bit." LeShawna came up to her.

Gwen sat up and raised an eyebrow at her, but decided to get up.

"Gwen girl, I want to apologise for how I acted yesterday. It was in poor taste and even though I'd never support her, I guess I can understand why you did. Heather _is_ the lesser of two evils after all…" LeShawna shrugged.

"I guess that's fine. I can understand why you acted the way you did as well." Gwen said.

"But that's- well, that's not the main issue I wanted to talk to you about." LeShawna stopped suddenly.

"Oh?" Gwen folded her arms across her chest and gave the larger teen a look.

"It's about Duncan."

"What about him?"

"I- don't- like- him. At all. He's a user. Get rid of him!" LeShawna exclaimed.

"I've been having my doubts about him myself, Shawnie…" Gwen looked down.

"I don't think they will be doubts any more when you watch this…" LeShawna held up a portable DVD player, taken from the satchel he was carrying.

"Oh? What's this?" Gwen asked.

LeShawna had a flat expression on her face as she turned on the DVD player.

On it played various scenes from the past season.

"_The way I see it, Duncan is a double gold medallist in the Total Drama Babe Olympics!" he exclaimed._

"_There's a Babe Olympics?" Tyler asked in awe._

"_Well, Duncan is the only guy in TD history to score two hotties!" Owen explained._

"_Courtney __**and**__ Gwen! Punk's got mojo!" Tyler commented._

Gwen raised an eyebrow at this.

"_Men, we must rise from the ashes and ignite the flames of victory!" Alejandro said._

"_I'm all for starting fires!" Duncan said._

"_The Amazons are only powerful because they have both Courtney and Heather. We need to break them apart, but how?" Alejandro asked. _

"_Ooh, ooh, ooh! Act like you're crushing on Heather and she'll go home same as Bridgette and LeShawna!" Owen suggested._

_Duncan perked up. "Bridgette __**and **__LeShawna? I thought I was the only guy that snagged double gold at the Babe Olympics!"_

_Alejandro thought quickly to come up with an answer that would satisfy him._

"_Uh... yes! I was... truly fond of both. Sadly the fates were against us. I suppose I could attempt a false seduction, but it goes against the gentleman's code..." he said._

"_There's a code for that crud?" Duncan raised his eyebrow._

"_And if I seduce Heather, Courtney will remain unaffected! If only we could weaken both at once..." Alejandro continued._

"_Easy! Heather's kinda into you, right? So... seduce Courtney!" Duncan suggested. _

"_Of course! If I flirt with Courtney, it will distract both of them from the game at hand and one will surely vote the other out! Brilliant idea Duncan!" Alejandro exclaimed._

Gwen stood there fuming as LeShawna closed the DVD player.

"He, he… URGH!" Gwen stomped the ground. "You know, I feel so stupid! I mean, he did kiss me and all, but I should have known that he'd be like this!" She threw a hateful glare at the delinquent who, lucky for him, did not see it as he was jeering at Courtney after she'd done something to piss Eva off and she had thrown the Anti-Keeper into the ocean.

"Well, what are you going to do about it?" LeShawna asked.

"You know, I could fool around with him for a bit- you know, mess with him. Keep him on his toes so he never knows where he stands with me…" Gwen smirked mischievously.

"Girl, you evil! But I like the way you think!" LeShawna chuckled.

"He played with me and Courtney, so it's time for him to get a taste of his own medicine…"

* * *

Back in Drumheller, Sierra and Cody were rummaging through what was left of the plane to see what they could find to get them to Tijuana Beach.

"Let's see…" Cody said. They wondered over to what was formerly known as First Class.

"Here are some seats, still intact!" Sierra said, lifting two of them joined together into the air.

"Hey, bring those over here! I'm sure I can figure out something to do with those!" Cody said, while still rummaging through where he was, lifting out something. "A flamethrower?" He raised an eyebrow at the object he now held in his hands.

Meanwhile Heather and Alejandro were outside, talking.

"I'm guessing that this is the part where you ask me for an alliance?" Heather folded her arms.

"Tell me, why would I want to do that?" Alejandro raised an eyebrow.

"Oh come on, Cody will never last to the final two. It's sure to be us!" Heather exclaimed.

"You wish. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a million dollars to win. See you in Hawaii! Or not, haha!" Alejandro waved and walked off.

Heather rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I'm going to do whatever it takes to win. You'll only win _**over my dead body!**_" The Earth Keeper roared after him.

* * *

**Wrecked Confessional Lavatory**

**Alejandro: **"Heather has a way of making my focus slip- like a too small speedo. Perhaps it is better that we travel alone after all so she cannot distract me with her cute, evil, attractive, horrendous ways-" He slapped himself. "Snap out of it, Alejandro!"

* * *

"FOCUS!" Alejandro kept telling himself.

"You'd better focus, Alejandro. It is on! I am gonna smoke you for breakfast!" Heather declared through the walkie-talkie.

"_Bring it!"_

"Blah, blah, blah. Guess what? I can just turn you off!"

"_**Of course **__you can. You're an __**expert**__ at turning people off!"_

Heather growled and viciously stabbed the button to turn it off.

"Much better. Now I'll be able to become Queen of Millionaire City. Now how the hell do I get to Mexico from here?" She wondered.

While that was going on, Cody and Sierra were still rummaging in the plane's wreckage.

"Oh?" Cody held up a wheel- one that could be put on a car.

"Look! Here's another one!" Sierra said, holding another up.

"What would Chris be doing with car tyres on a plane?" Cody wondered.

He shook off the feeling and glanced back at the two seats that they had retrieved.

He looked from the seats to the wheels to the wreckage around him and back again.

"Hmmm… Now if only I had some tools and a welding torch…"

"HERE THEY ARE!" Sierra rummaged through her backpack and pulled them out.

"Wait. What were you doing with those?" Cody asked.

"Do you _really_ want to know?" Sierra asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

Cody shuddered. "Perhaps not…"

* * *

Alejandro had ended up following the interns and saw them loading animals into a truck.

A smirk formed on his face and an evil idea formed in his little head.

"_Why not just follow the evil beasts that Chris loves to torture us so much with?"_ He asked himself.

"Tijuana Beach, here I come!" He used his skills of stealth to slip into the truck when the interns turned away and crouched in a corner as they came back to shut the door.

"_Perfect…"_

However, when the animals saw him, they began to go berserk, as if they too could tell that something was majorly off with the Latino teen.

The Saquatchanakwa growled furiously and lumbered towards him, cornering him.

"This is not good…" Alejandro got wide-eyed.

* * *

Heather had instead taken to wondering around.

"Seriously. Why does everything have to look alike out here?" She wondered.

As she wondered this, she tripped and fell.

"Ouch!" She looked around to see what had caused her fall.

"Train tracks? Who the hell puts train tracks in the middle of nowhere? There's no one around here to take a- **TRAIN!** Of course!" Heather jumped back up. "_Yes!_ I can take the train!"

Back at the wreckage, Cody was working feverishly on his project and then stepped back to look at it.

"Whoa." Sierra said in awe.

Cody had somehow taken the two seats, joined them together, put the car tires on the bottom, and had on one side of it, something that looked like the dashboard of a car. Did we mention that he had somehow managed to shape metal from the wreckage into airplane wings and attach them to the sides of the seats?

"Yep, not the best flying machine I could have built, but considering what we do have to work with, it's pretty okay…" He hooked up the GPS and the walkie-talkie to the dashboard thing and got into that seat while Sierra took the other.

"Helmets!" Sierra exclaimed, tossing a dark green one to Cody, while keeping a dark yellow one for herself.

"Ready?" Cody revved up his invention.

Sierra nodded.

"Okay then. Let's go!" Cody grabbed the steering wheel and double checked the GPS.

The airplane-seat… _thing _revved up and sped off and soon took to the sky.

* * *

Back in Hawaii, the former contestants were all out on the town, engaged in various activities in the local mall.

Lindsay, Katie and Sadie carried the most shopping bags and were chatting happily together, Izzy, Owen, Eva and Noah were in an electronics store.

Gwen, Bridgette and LeShawna were in the food court having some lunch and they began to talk.

"So Gwen. About the delinquent…" leShawna started.

"Yes, he's a lying jerkass which I know because of how we got together, I know, I know…" Gwen sighed, stirring her chocolate milkshake with a straw.

"You need to drop him like a hot potato!" LeShawna said.

"Shawnie's right. He's got to go. I never liked him much before and I certainly don't like him much more now…." Bridgette said.

"You're both right." Gwen head-desked.

When she looked up again, she looked right into Trent's eyes who was right across the food court. They gazed at one another and even smiled, before Trent turned away.

"You still love Trent, don't you?" Bridgette got to the point.

"Yes… But I screwed up when it comes to him. I rather treated him like dirt. I don't expect to get back with him now, even if I were to fully break it off with Duncan…" The Goth sighed, fiddling with the Silver Star.

"You still keeping him on his toes?" LeShawna asked, smirking.

"Yep. Apparently he now thinks that I'm a time bomb _that will go off at any second…_" Gwen said, a slight smile forming on her face.

Bridgette and LeShawna burst out laughing.

* * *

Heather was relaxing in a train seat as it chugged along on its non-stop trip to Mexico.

She took up a Mexican newspaper and began to read it idly for a few minutes before tossing it away out of boredom.

She got up, yawned and stretched before walking around the train.

Unknown to her however, Alejandro was now in the cargo section of the train, getting out of a crate.

The animals all began to glare at him again and the Sasquatchanakwa shook a fist at him, snarling furiously.

"¡Qué terrible!" He exclaimed.

"Now where is Heather?" He brushed himself off. "It's time to find her and DESTROY HER! Just as she has tried to destroy me…"

Above the train, a hawk flew, keeping the train in its sights. When it saw Alejandro inside, leaving the cargo hold, it swooped down and flew through the window of the cargo hold, turning into Ezekiel- a fully healed, normal looking Ezekiel.

The animals started a ruckus again, but he held up his hands to silence them.

"Calm down, eh? I'm not here to hurt you…" He said.

Apparently the animals believed him as they all began to settle down.

"Where did he go?" Ezekiel asked.

The animals all raised paws/fingers/wings towards the door that Alejandro disappeared through.

"Thank you." Ezekiel did a little bow before transforming back into a hawk and flying that way.

* * *

Cody and Sierra were up in Cody's flying contraption which was actually running rather smoothly…

"Wow! You're a bonafide genius!" Sierra said. "This flying machine thing runs so well! People back home would pay lots of money for a more, well… less mismatched version of this thing!" She exclaimed.

"Thanks!" Cody checked the GPS.

"We've actually made some pretty good headway so far…" He commented.

"Cody, _**watch out!**_" Sierra shrieked.

Cody looked up to see Chris and Chef's helicopter right in front of them and narrowly turned upwards to miss it.

"DUDE! Watch where you're flying that piece of junk!" Chris exclaimed angrily.

"Piece of junk? PIECE OF _**JUNK?**_" Cody was furious.

"Calm down Cody. That jerkface isn't worth it…" Sierra said, calming him down.

"Hey, is that Sierra next to you? We don't need cling-ons in this show you know!" Chris said.

It was Sierra's turn to get mad.

"Cling on? Did he just call me a _**CLING ON?**_ Give me that!" Sierra snarled, trying to grab the walkie-talkie away from Cody.

"I think it's your turn to calm down, Sierra. Remember what you said about Chris…" Cody looked frightened.

"That was BEFORE he called me a cling-on!" Sierra snapped.

"_Attention: An extreme weather warning has been issued for all aircraft." _The radio in the dashboard announced.

The Super-Fan/Nadiri Princess and the Techno-Geek/Wizard looked at one another.

"Looks like we need somewhere to land…" Cody glanced down at the terrain below them.

* * *

"Who knew winning would be this easy?" Heather asked aloud, reclining in a seat.

"Tickets please!" The conductor walked down the aisle of the train and eventually came to Heather, who casually handed him her ticket and went back to relaxation.

"Oh, I must have mine in here somewhere…"

Heather froze. She would know that voice anywhere…

She looked around and locked eyes with Alejandro.

"YOU!" They narrowed their eyes at one another.

"Well, well, _well. _Buenos tardes, Señorita Heather. I bet you thought that you were going to win today. You thought wrong." Alejandro said, folding his arms.

"Oh?" Heather raised an eyebrow. "And who is here to help you win? There's no one here that you can manipulate because your tricks certainly won't work on me!"

"Oh, I know. You would see through my schemes seeing as you're as evil as I am!" Alejandro exclaimed.

"I'm nowhere as evil as you are." Heather glared at him.

A loud growl was heard from behind the shadow manipulator.

Alejandro turned to look and Heather looked as well.

A large Doberman was standing there, growling and snarling, obviously not very pleased.

"Oh boy…" Heather thought.

The dog snarled particularly loudly and lunged forward, chasing the two magical beings.

"AHH! I don't want to mauled to death by a dog!" Heather cried out.

"Would you rather be mauled to death by a shark?" Alejandro asked.

Heather glared at him for a moment, before continuing to run and they found themselves on top of the train for some strange reason.

All of a sudden Ezekiel the Hawk flew into the compartment they just left and began dive-bombing the vicious dog who tried jumping up and snapping at him, but missed every time.

After a while, the dog fell to the ground, stunned by a tranquilizer dart and Ezekiel flew out.

"Sorry about that. This one got out of the cargo hold. You folks alright?" The conductor from earlier peeked out the window while re-adjusting his dart gun.

Heather and Alejandro folded their arms and glared down at him.

* * *

Cody flew his machine down and guided it inside a large cave, landing smoothly.

"That was impressive!" Sierra clapped.

"Once again, thank you. We're away from the cameras now, so feel free to use your magic to light up this place…" He said.

"Gladly!" Sierra activated her sceptre ring and it glowed brightly, binging much-needed light into the dark cave.

Cody used one of the tools he had found earlier to make a stand for the sceptre and Sierra put it in.

"Kind of a crude stand for such a magical golden sceptre…" Cody commented.

"But it works, doesn't it?" Sierra giggled.

"Hard to believe that outside is so bright and in here is so dark…"

Sierra looked outside the cave. "Not really. There are storm clouds hanging around now. I- EEK!" She rushed back inside the cave quickly as lightning struck right outside it.

* * *

Somehow, Heather and Alejandro were on top of the moving train on different cabins.

"You're never going to win, Alejandro? What are you gonna do? Push me off the train?" Heather taunted.

"You are the one who pushes people too far, Heather!" Alejandro took off his belt and latched it onto the latches that kept the cabins together.

"Oh no you don't!" Heather ran forward, but hailstones began to fall and she tripped on them.

"Seriously? Does fate not want me to win this _***censored***_ game?" Heather asked angrily.

"I would guess not." Alejandro smirked as he finally managed to separate the two carriages.

"Good bye Heather. I think I shall miss your legs most of-"

"HIYAH!" Alejandro was cut off by Heather jump-kicking him right to the face.

Alejandro stood back up again as Heather climbed over the top of the carriage.

"The only one that's leaving is YOU!" She declared.

Alejandro climbed up behind her.

"Oh yeah?"

The two began to engage in an epic hand to hand combat battle, with spin kicks, drop kicks and plenty of other types of kicks.

* * *

Sierra sat up and stretched in the cave.

"Oh boy. Sleeping in a cave does NOT do wonders for your spine at all…" Sierra complained, getting up to reach for her sceptre.

"I wouldn't think that…" Cody used the flamethrower they had to light a fire and cook some of the food they had found in the rubble seemingly unharmed.

After they finished, the two pushed his flying machine outside the cave and sat in it. The techno geek prepared the machine for take-off and they were off once again.

"Let's see how far we are, shall we?" He checked the GPS and saw that they were not too far behind Alejandro and Heather.

"Hm. I dare say we can catch up, don't you think?" He asked.

"Of course!" Sierra exclaimed.

* * *

Heather managed to kick Alejandro right off the side of the train and did a backflip, landing right inside the doorway of the cabin.

"YES!" She pumped her fist into the air.

"Now to just kick back and relax…" Heather reclined in a chair and even ordered a three course meal when the food cart came rolling through.

She ate while leafing through some Spanish-language magazines.

* * *

"Dammit!" Alejandro muttered, seeing the train speed off into the distance.

"Now what am I supposed to do?" He complained.

He heard the sound of hooves behind him.

"Horses? How convenient!"

Alejandro leapt out of the way of the stampede and managed to vault himself into the air, landing on the back of one of the horses.

"_Perfecto…"_

* * *

In Hawaii, the former contestants were back at the hotel lounging when Geoff's cell phone rang.

"Aloha!" He answered cheerfully.

He listened intently as someone spoke to him.

"Uh huh, yeah. Sure. We'll get on it." He ended the call.

"Hey guys! The finalists are within three hours of arriving in Hawaii. We need to get moving!" he announced.

The Keepers present all looked at one another. The finale was almost here…

* * *

Heather got off at a train station where a large sign saying _"Bienvenidos a Tijuana" _declared that she had reached her destination.

She then saw Alejandro rush past her riding a horse.

"Adios, amiga!" He waved.

Heather fumed- and then looked around to see more horses coming.

"Not so fast!" Heather took a running jump and landed on top of another horse.

"You can't get rid of me that easily, you know!" Heather exclaimed as she caught up to him.

Alejandro looked mildly surprised at this.

"I will squish you like a bug!" She exclaimed.

"I will pluck you like a chicken!" He exclaimed.

Heather slapped out at him, before they heard Chris' voice calling out and looked up to see a finish line banner head of them, which the host was standing up in front of.

"LOOK OUT!"

The two got wide-eyed as the horses stopped suddenly and threw them through the air.

"AAH!" They screamed as they flew through the air and landed on the beach, right next to each other.

"I hate you." Alejandro declared.

"I feel exactly the same…" Heather replied.

"Hey guys. There's still a race to million going on, you know. Hawaii's right over there…" Chris came over and pointed towards the water.

In the air, Sierra looked down and saw Chris, Heather and Alejandro.

"Oh look Cody! They're right down there!" she pointed them out.

"Thank goodness we made it!" Cody exclaimed.

The airplane-machine-thing began to sputter and stopped.

"I'm guessing that you ran out of fuel." Sierra said simply.

Cody nodded, a frightened expression on his face.

The machine fell out of the sky.

"YAAAH!" Sierra and Cody held onto one another tightly as the machine smoked and twirled around the air.

It eventually crash landed on the beach and skidded across the sand, throwing them into one of the boats there.

Sierra got up. "COME ON, COME ON! DRIVE, DRIVE, DRIIIIIVE!" Sierra yelled.

Cody bolted up, grabbed the wheel and sped away.

"And Cody takes the lead!" Chris declared.

"Not for long!" Heather and Alejandro said in unison, jumping into their respective boats.

Heather sped off and knocked into Cody's boat.

"Hey Heather, where did you learn how to drive?" He called out.

The boat shook violently rammed it.

"I'm afraid you're not going _anywhere,_ Cody." Alejandro stood up and wielded a swordfish which he had apparently gotten out of nowhere.

Cody did the same.

"ENGUARD!" Cody took the first swipe and the two began swordfish fighting over the sides of their boats.

"Go Cody GO!" Sierra cheered on the techno geek.

* * *

At the final destination point, the former contestants stood there waiting, many of them with crabby looks on their faces.

"When _**are**_ they going to get here?" LeShawna asked.

"I want to get this over with so I can go _home._" Noah added.

On top of one of the coconut trees there, a parrot, also known as Ezekiel sat, wondering the same thing.

"_Wait, is that Heather out there?" _Ezekiel held up a wing to shade his eyes.

It was.

Heather, with a determined look on her face steered her boat to shore, did a backflip and landed on the sand gracefully.

"Yes, yes, yes! I did it!" She jumped up and down cheering.

"_Congratulations Heather!"_ Bridgette thought.

"_Congratulations on making it so far. Just remember my dear successor, the game isn't over yet…" _Deanna thought.

"And Heather makes it into the final two! The only question remains- who will join her? Cody or Alejandro?" Chris asked.

"I did it!" Cody began to cheer as his boat pulled in.

"_Don't think so soon!"_ Ezekiel thought as he saw Alejandro and his boat flying through the air.

The two boats collided and Sierra, Cody and Alejandro were thrown through the air and landed on the beach.

"Oh wow." Chris glanced down at them. "Now _that's _what you call a tie people!"

"Should we go to the slow-mo to declare a winner?" The host checked his watch.

"But… we're… out… of… time… as… of… now…"

Heather, Alejandro, Cody and Sierra all groaned.

"Tune in next time folks to find out who battles who and who finally wins the million on Total- Drama- _**World Tour!**_"

Ezekiel kicked off a coconut and made it fall onto Chris' head.

"_**OUCH!"**_

* * *

Wow, another chapter finished- and faster than I thought too…

I must say I agree with Sierra when she says she'd buy one of Cody's flying machines. I want one!

Anyway, the grand finale of Total Drama World Tour is up next! What will happen? Who will win? Read, review and sit tight until the next chapter to find out!


	32. Aloha, Finale!

I created a small forum, the link to which is on my profile. It's called Desiderata Valley. It's nothing big, but it's just something that I created so that I could talk to you all in ways other than author's notes and review replies. So check it out after you're done reading, won't you?

Also, I wrote part of an original book somewhat based on this story and gave it in to my English lecturer at university and she said I should continue it. I squeed out loud. Am I really that good?

_Anyway…_

Here we are! The grand finale of Total Drama World Tour! Let's see how it turns out, shall we?

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"Welcome to the live finale of Total Drama World Tour!"

Chris stood on the beach with Bridgette and Geoff on his right and Heather, Cody and Alejandro on his right.

"Moments ago, Cody and Alejandro tied for second in a boat sandwich. Mmm…" Chris rubbed his hands together.

"During the break, we sent them to vent in the Confessional. Check it!"

* * *

**Hawaiian Confessional**

**Alejandro: **"I only let Heather beat me to give her a false sense of confidence, but how will I explain to those at home that I'm tied with that pathetic _Cody? _My brother José will be compiling his insults already!"

**Cody: **"I made it all the way to the final two-_ish! _I can't believe how close I am to the million! There's just one big massive thing in my way: _Alejandro. _Against just me… Never thought I'd say this, but I wish Sierra was back in here with me!"

* * *

"You never mentioned you had a brother… José was it? " Heather said in a curious tone.

"He is not worth mentioning." Alejandro dismissed her.

"GO TEAM ALEJANDRO!" Sadie yelled from the stands where the ex-contestants were sitting. This drew their attention to them.

"_Why_ are they in _teams? _And _why _does my team suck… wait a minute, is that Gwen on my team?" Heather noticed Gwen with a Heather flag in her hand and her eyes widened in shock.

"_Yes, it is!"_ Gwen answered.

"The peanut gallery is playing a major role in choosing a winner!" Chris answered.

Said Peanut Gallery then began to cheer and wave around their flags.

"Sweet! I'm guessing we're all voting on the winner again!" Duncan commented.

Gwen glanced over him to look at Trent, who looked back at her for a moment before shrugging.

"Did I say my team sucks? What I _actually _meant was they rock!" Heather tried to take back her earlier words.

"You think we're fools? You and Alejandro are _**done!**_" LeShawna exclaimed angrily, shaking a fist.

"We're here for you Cody! Especially me!" Sierra exclaimed.

* * *

**Hawaiian Confessional**

**Heather:** "Believe it or not, I am actually hoping Alejandro _wins _the tiebreaker. I might be able to beat _him _in a vote!"

* * *

"But first, we've got to break a tie. Heather, since you won the race to Hawaii, your reward is this advantage: you can select the tiebreaker yourself or you can let Cody or Alejandro do it."

"As if! _I'll _do it, Chris!" Heather exclaimed.

"I was hoping you'd say that…" Chris cackled, making Heather nervous.

He led them over to l large glass compartment with a door and a giant sphere on top.

"TA-DAAAAAAAAAAAA! Each ball in our Challenge Booth has a different challenge written on it. So, take your pick…"

"Well, isn't _this _fun…" Heather strolled forward into the Booth and Chris shut the door behind her.

As the machine turned on and the sphere began to rumble, Heather glanced up worriedly.

Then came the torrent of golf balls…

"AAH! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?" She shouted.

Gwen and Izzy couldn't help but snicker at her predicament along with the other former contestants.

"I swear! Geoff and I put Ping-Pong balls in there!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"Yeah, I know. And I'm not mad- just disappointed." Chris said. "I had to dial it up to meet my usual high standards…"

"I SWEAR TO GOD CHRISTIAN ANDREW MCLEAN, WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE I WILL _**EFFING KILL YOU!**_" Heather roared.

She caught one and handed it over to Chris, but not without smacking him around the head.

"Ouch Heather! That was not needed!" Chris exclaimed. "Anyway…" Chris gazed down at the golf ball he now held. "Heather has selected the traditional Hawaiian Fire Dance of _Death…_"

Alejandro smirked at Cody evilly and the techno-geek began to feel well and truly worried at this point.

* * *

"I question how traditional it is for a male warrior to wear a coconut bra…"Alejandro commented, gesturing to the costumes that he and Cody wore, which consisted of the bra and grass skirts. They were also given two metal poles with large cylindrical cushion-like things on either end.

"_And I'm sure José is_ _**somewhere**__ out there getting this on tape…" _He thought bitterly.

They were now out on a platform on the water Cody on one side and Alejandro on the other. In the middle there was a pole- to which Heather was tied.

"Forget that! What the hell do I need to be tied up for?" Heather asked angrily.

"Whatever. The first to free Heather wins a spot in the final two and a chance at the million." Chris said from the beach where Chef/Samuel stood. Chef was now dressed in a plain white T-Shirt, a Hawaiian skirt, had a wreath of flowers on his head and was barefoot.

"Chef, will you do the honours of getting this thing started?" Chris turned to him.

Chef got out his bow and arrow set and fired two flaming arrows at the same time, which ignited two stands on either side of the platform.

He also fired off some steaks.

"Oh, and watch out for the water. You don't wanna fall in. It's shark infested…" Chris chuckled.

"_I hope she gets out of this one okay…"_ Samuel thought.

Duncan on the shore chuckled. "Man is it nice to be out of this game!"

"Shut it, or I'll throw you in there myself!" Gwen snapped.

He immediately became silent.

"Now… GO!" Chris shouted.

Cody and Alejandro began swinging at one another.

"Prepare to be defeated, my tiny friend…" Alejandro said.

"I have not, am not and will _**never **_be your friend!" Cody retorted, putting his best into it.

"I'm too young to die!" Cody exclaimed, as Alejandro pushed him down, despite him doing his best. Alejandro was just too strong…

"STAY FOCUSED, CODYKINS!" Sierra yelled.

"The kiwis! Go for the kiwis!" Harold suggested.

"GO ALEJANDRO! SQUISH THAT BASTARD LIKE A BUG!" Courtney shouted.

"Hang in there Heather! It'll soon be over!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Hopefully not in the way I'm thinking!" Heather exclaimed.

"And where's the other members of my team? Where's the encouragement?" She asked.

LeShawna simply flipped her off.

"_I'm still here, Heather…" _Gwen reminded her.

"_Yeah, real comforting with two guys fighting with giant swing-y things on a platform with two flaming sides that's situated in the middle of shark-infested water!"_ Heather retorted.

She screamed as a flaming arrow impaled right above her head.

"Give up! You know you can't win!" Alejandro and Cody had gotten back up and were shoving around each other again, the former taunting the latter.

"Someone had BETTER win fast before I burst into a flaming barbeque!" Heather exclaimed.

Her wish was soon granted- but not quite in the way she had expected.

Alejandro knocked Cody's pole right out of his hands and into the water.

"Uh-oh…" Cody followed its fall with his eyes.

"Consider yourself disarmed. And dis-platformed." Alejandro took another swing which knocked the techno-geek right off the platform and straight into the water, Cody sreaming all the way.

Chris was watching this all with amusement. "Ruthless!" He commented.

Cody looked around him nervously, seeing a shark circling him.

"Please don't eat me, please don't eat me…" He chanted.

The shark lunged at him and Cody only made it a few metres away before it swallowed him whole, making the ex-contestants on shore gasp in horror.

"NO!" Lindsay and Sierra gasped in unison.

"Cody! I'm COMING!" Sierra leapt off the bench and sped into the water so fast you could barely see her.

She came back out, swinging around the shark by its tail.

"DROP HIM! DROP HIM I SAY, BEFORE I MAKE SHARK CHOPS OUT- OF- _**YOU!**_" Sierra yelled. With the last shake, Cody skidded out from the shark's mouth groaning.

Lindsay and a few of his other supporters ran over to him, but Sierra shoved through them to get to her beloved.

"Codykins! Are you okay?" She asked worriedly.

"How okay do you think I would be after being thrown out of a shark?" He sputtered, coughing up water.

"I think Colin might be okay after all. Alejerkface on the other hand…" Lindsay and Cody's supporters all turned as one to glare at Alejandro, who was untying Heather.

"Shoving Mr Popular into shark-infested waters for no reason? You just handed me the million! I can't thank you enough!" Heather said to him.

He looked over to the shore to notice Heather's team, Cody's team and even his team (with Courtney as an exception!) glaring at him.

"_Oh crap…"_

* * *

"Now that we have our final two, it's my pleasure to announce… the Peanut Gallery will NOT be voting for the winner!" Chris announced.

"What?" Heather exclaimed.

Alejandro breathed a sigh of relief. Perhaps he still stood a chance of winning after all…

"WHAT? But you said we were going to play a major role! MAJOR!" Courtney stood up.

Gwen rolled her eyes.

"Oh, you are. Just not in a voting kind of way. Prepare to have your minds _blown _out by the most lethal challenge in Total Drama history!" Chris exclaimed.

"_I do NOT envy you on this one Heather…" _She said.

"_If this is what it takes to beat that bastard, so be it."_ Heather thought back determinedly.

"It's Heather versus Alejandro, versus _**the volcano!**_"

"Back in the day, human sacrifices were tossed into Kilauea Volcano to appease the gods. Sadly, the lawyers won't let me use real people as sacrifices."

"Well that's a relief!" Gwen called out.

"So, Heather and Alejandro will have to _make _sacrifice stand-ins of their own using the island's most abundant resources." Chris gestured to his left. "Pineapples and driftwood!"

"And to make it nice and symbolic, you guys have to make dummies of each other to dump in the volcano! Now, you each get to pick two helpers from your teams." Chris finished.

"I dare any one of you to pick _**me! **_Come on!" LeShawna said angrily.

Alejandro pondered for a moment. "I choose Courtney and Katie."

"YES!" Courtney pumped her fist into the air.

"EEE!" Katie jumped up and down squeeing with Sadie.

"OHMYGOSH! You are so lucky!" Sadie squealed.

"Oh, _I know,_ right?" Katie squealed back.

"So, who do I pick for my team?" Heather scanned her options.

"ALEJANDRO IS GOING _**DOWN!**_" Cody shouted.

* * *

**Hawaiian Confessional**

**Cody: **"Nobody makes shark bait out of me and gets away with it. Heather was pretty good to me overall- hey wait, I think I'm the first person to ever say that. Anyway, I'm doing whatever it takes to bring Alejandro down. He could have KILLED ME!" He shook a fist at the camera.

* * *

"I'll do it too." Gwen stepped forward.

LeShawna and many others there looked at her in disbelief.

"Okay, we have our helpers." Gwen, Cody and Heather stood on Chris' left while Courtney, Katie and Alejandro stood on his right.

"Now Heather and Alejandro, you must remain on these mats-" Chris gestured to a blue circular mat on Alejandro's side and a red one on Heather's side.

"-and direct your helpers to bring you logs, driftwood pineapples that resemble parts of your opponent. Now let the sacrifice building _**begin!**_"

Alejandro and Heather rushed to their mats.

"Go over there! Find me some giant feet!" Alejandro pointed out one pile.

"Move, move it, move it you two! Go find me some logs to match his frame. Preferably large, chunky and _**overbuilt!**_" Heather commanded, pointing to one pile, while glaring at her opponent.

As Gwen and Cody followed Heather's instructions, Gwen asked him something. "Hey Cody, why is it that you let Alejandro beat you? I know you're pretty strong! I mean, giving Duncan a knock-out punch among other things…"

"I guess it was a combination of nerves and a lack of self-confidence…" He sighed, bringing his load to the mat and running back for more.

"I'm gonna win this, you know!" Heather said.

"No, I don't believe you are! You totally can't take the win away from _mio!_" Alejandro gestured to himself.

"Why, I do believe I can!" Heather retorted.

"Is this thigh fat enough?" Courtney held up a piece of wood for Alejandro to inspect.

"HEY!" Heather cried out indignantly.

"Trust me Heather, it's not as big as Courtney's are!" Gwen called out, making the ex-contestants, Chris and Chef laugh and Courtney fume.

"This neck big enough to be Alejerkass's neck?" Gwen asked her opinion on another piece.

"Yeah sure. Add that to the dummy- although I can't tell the difference really between it and that over there…" Heather thumbed Alejandro over her shoulder.

"I need thin, scrawny, flat pieces of wood for Heather's arms." Alejandro instructed, looking back to glare at his opponent.

Courtney and Katie put together the pieces they had gathered together thus far and ran off to look for more.

"Come on Team Heather! I know you can do better than that!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Two knobbly knees, arms like logs of mouldy cheese and a giant HEAD!" Heather commanded.

"On it!" Cody and Gwen ran back to look for the requested wooden parts.

"_Come on, come on, come on…" _Gwen thought, wrenching her new parts together with what was there before.

"MOVE QUICKER!" Heather shouted.

"Come on Cody, you can do it! Don't let Heather down! It'll let Alejerkface win!" Sierra called out.

"This is going to be _so much fun_ helping to humiliate anyone _Gwen _supports…" Courtney commented. "It's not even about the money anymore for me!"

Courtney and Gwen looked up at one another as they put together the final piece of their respective team's dummy.

"DONE!" They shouted in unison.

"And it's a tie!" Chris announced.

"DAMN IT!" Gwen and Heather shouted in unison.

* * *

**Hawaiian Confessional**

**Gwen: **"All that work on that dummy just to come in a tie with Alejerkass? Really? Heather had better win this. SHE'D BETTER!" Gwen shook a fist at the camera.

**Cody: **"Heather. Has. To. Win. This. I won't have the jerkass that threw me to sharks win!"

* * *

"Your next step is to haul your sacrifices to the top of Kilauea and toss 'em into the volcano, like so." Chris gestured to the top of the volcano where a worker in a bright yellow safety suit tossed a dummy in- but not before getting caught in a backsplash of lava that proved that the suit was no help at all as the worker ran away charred and screaming.

"_Yeah…_ You two might want to watch out for the backsplash…"

Heather and Alejandro looked at one another worriedly as they watched Chef (now dressed in his usual outfit) wheel past the worker from earlier (who was covered entirely in bandages) in a wheelchair.

"You can't seriously expect us to throw these dummies into an active volcano without proper safety equipment, do you?" Heather raised an eyebrow.

"Heather, do you not know him by now?" Gwen asked.

"Goth chick is right. No excruciating pain, no million dollar gain." Chris gestured to the briefcase, which he held high above his head.

"To help you get those dummies to the top of the volcano, you can use the rewards your teams earned on your behalf in the Aftermath lava surfing challenge. Cody won a stroller, but he's out so… Anyway, Heather won a wheelbarrow and Alejandro won… zilch." Chris grinned.

"YES!" Heather jumped into the air and pumped a fist, while Alejandro growled.

"Now I would suggest that you two get going…" Chris said.

Heather bolted off lifting the dummy effortlessly over her head and put it in the wheelbarrow, taking off.

Alejandro slung his dummy over his shoulder and ran off.

As soon as they left, Gwen, Izzy, Lindsay and Izzy got in a huddle.

"Anybody want to mess with Alejerkass a little?" Gwen asked.

"Nope." Izzy said nonchalantly.

The others turned to look at her in disbelief.

"I want to mess with Alejerkass a lot…" Izzy added in a demented tone.

The Keepers smirked mischievously.

"Okay everyone, time to make your way up to the top to wait for their arrival. Let's go!" Chris clapped his hands to get their attention.

* * *

"Goodbye Heather! I won't say I haven't enjoyed defeating you!" Alejandro rushed past her on the slope.

"I don't believe that's gonna happen so easy, Alejerkface!" Heather exclaimed, pushing past him.

At the top of the volcano, Izzy looked down at the two finalists hurrying up.

"He, he, he, he, he…" She smirked.

She held her hand behind her back.

The rock beneath Alejandro's feet began to melt.

"I can almost taste the million! It tastes like mint and pure gold!" He exclaimed.

He then began to feel the effects of the melting rock as he began to slip up.

He fell and the dummy rolled a few feet behind him.

"DAMMIT!" He roared as he chased it down.

All the ex-contestants at the top of the volcano, Chris and Chef began laughing. Chef even had tears in his eyes.

* * *

**Hawaiian Confessional**

**Chef/Samuel: **"Watching people fall is funny. Watching Alejandro fall is even funnier. My bets are on Heather winning this thing."

* * *

Later on, Heather came across a giant lava lake.

"What the hell is this?" She exclaimed.

Alejandro came up behind her wheezing and panting and almost skidded into the lava, but barely managed to avoid falling in.

"¿Qué?" His eyes widened in shock.

Chris laughed at them from the other side, Chef standing next to him.

"Over here!"

"Look at the looks on their faces!" Chris laughed as he high-fived Chef.

"No way! How are we supposed to get across this?" Heather asked angrily.

"The only way to get across and to the top of the volcano is to get past this river of lava." Chris was gleeful.

"Heather, that wheelbarrow probably won't be of much help to you. All you have to do is hop across these stepping stones! Easy peasy!"

* * *

**Hawaiian Confessional**

**Heather: **"_**All** I have to do is hop across these stepping stones. _Funny! That's real funny Chris. _All I have to do_ indeed…"

* * *

"But…" Chris pointed above them, where they noticed several random objects strung up such as logs, anvils, safes and even baby grand pianos.

"We've rigged a few booby traps to… that's right!"

"Make things more interesting…" Alejandro and Heather said in unison, glaring at the host.

"Chef, a booby demo, if you please."

Chef twirled around a machete before cutting one of the ropes.

A thick log fell on one of the stepping stones, snapped in two and fell into the lava, instantly dissolving.

Heather and Alejandro stepped back in fear and Heather gasped, her hands to her mouth.

"Yeah, you really don't wanna get hit by those."

"NO SHIT, SHIRLOCK!" Izzy's voice came from the top of the volcano and Heather couldn't help but snicker at Chris' annoyed expression.

"Your helpers can either keep them secure…" He gestured to Gwen, Cody, Courtney and Katie standing next to him. "Or send them falling. It's your call. And GO!"

Heather and Alejandro swung their dummies over their shoulders and started across.

"_Thank goodness for ballet training!"_ Heather thought as she gracefully leapt from stone to stone despite carrying a large wooden effigy across her back.

"_That's the spirit, Heather! Keep it up!"_ Deanna thought to her.

"_Thanks Deanna. I have no intent on letting Ale-bastard win!"_ Heather thought back.

"Chop away, ladies!" Alejandro called out.

Courtney smirked as she swung her machete, cutting a rope.

A large log fell, narrowly missing the Earth Keeper.

"What are you two waiting for? Stop them!" Heather exclaimed.

Cody lunged for Courtney, knocking her over while Gwen cut another rope, causing a safe to fall, which nearly hit Alejandro.

"Give it up Señorita Heather!" He panted.

"NEVER!" Heather shouted. "No way, José!"

Alejandro stopped in his tracks. "What? What did you just say? Never EVER call me that, AGAIN!"

"Whoa, testy much?" Heather raised an eyebrow.

"José ALWAYS has to win. ALWAYS! He lives to make me miserable! He punches me in the arm and calls me _Al _just I hate it!" Alejandro clenched his fist and stood there fuming.

"Al hates being called Al?" Cody threw Courtney off him and got up.

"Gosh, Al! Owen must have called Al, AL, like a thousand times!" He exclaimed.

Alejandro stood there twitching.

"Huh, Al? Poor _**AL!**_"

Heather bypassed Alejandro without noticing.

"SHUT IT!" Alejandro stomped his foot and shouted.

Gwen darted forward and slashed another rope, causing a cage to trap Alejandro.

"Take _**that, **__AL!_" She pumped a machete wielding fist into the air.

"OH COME ON!" He shouted.

Courtney backhanded Cody and stepped forward.

"Come on ALEJANDRO! Are you really going to let that little bitch win?" She called out.

"I don't plan on it." Alejandro smirked.

With that, he knocked over the cage and darted out of it.

* * *

At the top of the volcano, everyone was fanning themselves except Izzy who looked quite happy where she was as the volcano's heat did not affect her. She trained _inside_ on one, after all…

Chris and Chef stood in front of a giant fan which was also surrounded by huge blocks of ice and an intern was holding one up in front of the fan to help keep them cool.

"Here they come!" Chris announced.

When they saw Heather reach the top of the volcano first, they all cheered.

Except for Courtney.

"I made it! I finally made it!" Heather hoisted the dummy above her head and glanced back at Alejandro who was scowling up at her.

"Go Heather!" Bridgette jumped up and down.

"Looking for this?" Chris held up the briefcase and gestured to it.

"Oh, so much." Heather smirked and glanced back at Alejandro again.

"Well, well, well. It looks like it's Game Over for you, Alejerkface." Heather smiled- the taunting smile.

"What makes you say that?" Alejandro folded her arms.

"_Heather, what are you doing?"_ Bridgette asked.

"_You'll see…" _Heather answered simply.

"You've manipulated quite a lot of us Alejandro. Both gamewise and with your _special abilities._" Heather started.

Alejandro's eyes widened.

"You _knew_ about that?" Alejandro's eyes widened in shock.

"How wouldn't I? Now the game was actually quite fun, playing it with you and all and I do admit I find you rather attractive…" Heather leaned in as if to kiss him…

"Yes?" Alejandro smirked.

Everyone else gasped.

She kneed him. "But we just wouldn't be compatible. So long, sucker!"

And with that, she kicked him hard enough to roll down the side of the volcano.

Heather walked over to the volcano's mouth.

"Yeah, boys are okay, but a million dollars is so much better!" She declared, hoisting her dummy high above her head and tossing it into the volcano.

"WOO HOO! SHE DID IT! SHE FINALLY DID IT!" Bridgette led the cheers.

"It's about time someone took La Cucaracha down!" Duncan exclaimed.

Gwen rolled her eyes at his comment.

"And Heather is the winner of Total Drama World Tour earning a cool million dollars!" Chris announced.

"That's fantastic! We knew you could do it!" Cody cheered.

"Yes, yes, YES! I DID IT! I BEAT ALEJANDRO!" Heather jumped up and down cheering with the briefcase held high above her head.

Gwen walked over to her and put a hand on her fellow Keeper's shoulder.

"I don't really like you, but I have to hand this one to you. You did pretty okay overall!"

Bridgette, Izzy and Lindsay also came over.

"Congratulations on beating that slimeball!" Bridgette smiled.

"Yeah. The Bigger Liar Than Even Justin totally deserved what he just got!" Izzy was jumping up and down ecstatically, rubbing her hands together in glee.

"What do you plan on doing now that you-" Lindsay was cut off when out of nowhere, there was a bright flash of light and Heather was blasted away from them, straight through the air, clutching the briefcase tightly to her.

The former contestants screamed.

When the light subsided, the Keepers saw Radcliffe there, blowing the smoke off the top of his staff, his hair billowing in the wind and a most disturbing smile on his face.

* * *

Yeah, I pretty much guess that you saw this ending coming a mile away but I still wanted to go for it anyway.

Remember to check out the Desiderata Valley forum on my profile and post there!

Anonymous reviewers, if you want a reply, please check out my e-mail address on my profile and send me a message there too.

_**REVIEW EVERYONE!**_


	33. Exposed

I remember a Spanish-speaking friend saying that I should get this translated into Spanish. I however, do not have enough Spanish skills for such a feat, so if anyone's interested in doing that, feel free to let me know…

Also, today is my country's Independence Day! November 30, 2011: Happy 45th Birthday Barbados!

**Disclaimer: **See Chapter 1.

* * *

"**OH CRAP!**" The Keepers exclaimed in unison.

"What? No parade for me? You're not happy to see me here?" Radcliffe asked sarcastically, twirling his staff.

Heather, as if by instinct immediately made the case disappear as she got up, groaning.

Radcliffe threw down his staff and the two snakes merged to become one- a snake at least twenty feet high and half as wide. It had dark orange diamonds down his back and its fangs looked to be at least a foot long. Its eyes were blood red.

"I just stopped by to pay a little visit and I brought my new pet to visit. Say hello to Lucifer." He stepped aside as the snake lunged.

"Uh oh..." Heather dodged out of the way as the vicious reptile lunged towards her.

All hell broke loose.

"_**SNAKE!**_" DJ screamed the loudest and most high-pitched scream of all as he, most of the other contestants and Chris began screaming and running around in a panic.

Courtney transformed and cast a spell to make Lucifer even angrier. Just for fun, she also sent a swarm of bees after Duncan, smirking as he ran screaming like a little girl.

Everyone else panicked even more.

Lucifer was about to lunge at Heather again but Ezekiel in the form of a panther leapt from behind her and knocked straight into Radcliffe.

"_You._" Radcliffe and Ezekiel locked eyes, giving each a look of utmost loathing.

"_Me._" Ezekiel growled simply.

Meanwhile Heather was kept busy, trying to dodge Lucifer who kept lunging for her so much, she couldn't even get the time needed to transform.

Lindsay reached out a hand towards the snake that immediately rose in the air and away from Heather, giving her the precious seconds needed to transform.

Once Heather flew out of the way, Lindsay threw down Lucifer and the other Keepers transformed.

"_Thanks Lindsay._" Heather said.

"_No problem._" Lindsay replied.

Gwen took charge. "Bridgette, I want you and Lindsay to get the other contestants to safety. I'll stay here with Heather and Izzy and knock these two down a peg or two!"

"Gotcha!" Bridgette and Lindsay flew off after the others .

"I'm staying!" Cody said to Gwen.

"Me too!" Sierra activated her sceptre.

"SO AM I!"

Everyone present, Sierra, Heather, Gwen, Izzy, Cody, Ezekiel, Courtney and even Radcliffe turned towards the voice.

_**Chef Hatchet **_stood there wearing olive green robes, long khaki pants and an olive green crown-style kufi.

Radcliffe's eyes grew wide in surprise. Courtney hovered where she was, stunned.

"YOU!" He shouted in rage, casting a spell to make Lucifer go back to him and reform into his staff.

"He says that word a lot, doesn't he?" Izzy commented.

"What the hell is going on here?" Heather asked puzzled. Cody, Sierra and Gwen shrugged.

"It's been a long time, Radcliffe."

Chef and Radcliffe circled, facing each other, waiting for the other to cast the first spell.

"Indeed, Samuel."

"**Oh.**" Gwen said.

"**My.**" Cody said.

"**God.**" Heather said.

Samuel, Zenith's Immortal was fighting Radcliffe right in front of them.

The same Immortal that was supposed to have disappeared centuries ago...

_Said Immortal was actually Chef Hatchett, the same one that had helped to make their lives hell for three seasons with crappy food, nightmare inducing cross dressing and his drill sergeant nasty attitude?_

"I find it hard to believe myself!" Ezekiel popped up out of nowhere beside them, startling them.

Radcliffe seemed to notice them again.

"But my fight today is with them." He turned his staff towards them and fired.

Courtney also fired a spell, cackling as she did.

Ezekiel transformed into a hawk, Gwen grabbed Cody and Heather grabbed Sierra and they flew out of the way just as the spells made impact where they were standing moments before, leaving a giant smoking crater.

Holding onto Cody with one arm, Gwen fired off several energy blasts with the other.

Radcliffe fired back, Gwen dodging out of the way several times, almost losing her grip on the techno-geek in the process.

Courtney fired a rapid succession of curses at Heather but she managed to create a metal shield that deflected most of them, albeit with some major damage to it.

Heather and Gwen managed to combine their magic to make a sword for Cody. It had a metal curved handle and a blade made of pure energy.

Gwen let go of the techno geek and as both he and the sword fell towards the ground, he did a mid-air flip, caught the sword and landed smoothly.

Ezekiel opened his mouth and deafening sonic waves headed for Courtney, flooring her, while Izzy formed a fire ball in her hands which Courtney narrowly avoided by rolling out of the way.

Heather raised her hands in front of her and a stone hand emerged, knocking Radcliffe off his feet at the same time that Cody decided to slash the sword, sending a few energy discs at the evil wizard.

Sierra swiped her sceptre and Radcliffe jumped out of the way to avoid the spell, where it ended up slashing a boulder in half.

Gwen narrowed her eyes at Courtney, who was getting back up from the ground and Courtney glared right back.

They were about to cast spells at one another when Radcliffe got _really_ angry.

"Now you've _really _pissed me off!" He growled.

He began to glow in his signature colour and so did the lava in the volcano.

He smirked evilly. "Agitation spell. _Have fun._" He said before both he and Courtney disappeared.

The lava began to bubble up.

"Uh oh..." Heather, Gwen, Cody, Ezekiel, Sierra, Izzy and Chef looked at each other nervously.

The lava shot straight at them.

Chef/Samuel managed to teleport out of the way while Gwen put up a shield to protect herself and the others, deflecting the lava over the side of the volcano.

This time Gwen used her magic to create a half dome to carry Cody and Sierra in when they flew off the side of the volcano and over the sea to catch up with Bridgette and Lindsay who were far out with the others.

Bridgette was using a giant block of ice to transport Geoff, Eva, DJ, Owen, Noah, Duncan and Harold while Lindsay carried Katie, Sadie, Trent, Tyler, Justin, LeShawna, Beth and Chris via her telekinesis.

"What's going on here?" Geoff asked.

"We'll explain when we get to safety." Bridgette screamed as a flaming boulder almost hit her, making her lose her control for a moment, which made the ice block start to plummet. She quickly regained control, but not before another flaming boulder came down nearby.

"_Vesta!_" Gwen cried out.

"_I'm sorry. You have to handle this on your own. We're all up here trying to do damage control. Besides, it's your job now, not mine!_" Vesta replied, shutting off the Link.

* * *

Back in Canada, in Desiderata Valley at Vesta's house, a number of people had congregated.

Vanessa, Seth and Rory were screaming in terror at the events happening on the television so much that Amy and Jack had to take them away.

"What do we do now, Vesta?" Someone asked her.

"We need to do whatever we can. This is on live television and streaming on the Internet in several countries throughout the world, so I suggest those of you who have contacts in other countries get there or at least talk to them and see what we can do. I've already called Alan. He was asleep, seeing as it's two in the morning or something like that in Plymouth, but he's up and about." Vesta answered.

Amy came back into the room. "Next move?" She asked.

"Marissa is in Toronto now. She's closest to the television company responsible for this show. She'll do what she can there. Aideen is in Halifax right now in one of their magical communities. Deanna is out in Edmonton and Akari is in Japan, this time with her daughters so I'm not sure she'd know what's going on yet. I'm sure Kenzo will call them soon. I'm going to see what I can do here; Joseph is in New York on business, Adrian is out in Paris and Derek is in Sydney..." Vesta paused.

"The rest of our children and the grandchildren that are old enough to are doing what they can..." Vesta sighed.

"_I hope Gwen and the others kill him good and proper for me when the time comes..._" She thought, rubbing a hand on her forehead.

* * *

At a party at a friend's house in Ottawa, Kimberly and a few of her friends were enjoying themselves.

Kimberly had quite dressed up for the occasion, wearing a tube-top black mini dress with a ruffle going down the front, matching stilettos, a silver, glittery headband and silver hoop earrings.

"This is so much fun! I haven't had a night out like this for so long!" Kimberly exclaimed, flopping into a couch, laughing.

"Well besides all the school stuff you've been caught up with, I can understand why!" Sabrina said.

"We didn't go out tonight to talk about school! Let's forget about that! I love an excuse to dress up to the nines like this!" Kimberly said.

"Uh-huh. And you have _me_ to thank, Kim! Let's not forget about that!" Jessica said.

"I know, right? You should host more birthday parties like this, Jessica! Congrats on finally turning 18 by the way!" She replied, smiling. "You're younger than me, still…"

"Oh come on, Kim! This is April. You're a _January _girl. Not that much ahead of me…" Jessica rolled her eyes.

Just then, the song Like Me by Girlicious began playing loudly throughout the house.

"I LOVE THIS SONG!" Kimberly exclaimed, dragging her two friends off the couch and they began dancing.

"_Tryin' to talk like me, tryin' to walk like me! Trying to get all the boys, shake their a-"_

The music cut out.

"HEY! What's the big idea?" They cried out indignantly.

"Jess, I think you gotta see this…" Another girl poked her head in.

Jessica, Sabrina and Kimberly looked at each other before going in.

"What the-" Kimberly's eyes widened as she saw the scene on the television play out.

"Okay girls, I gotta go…" She said, slipping away.

She found a hidden spot outside and transformed, wearing a one-sleeved long-sleeved lilac shirt, black shorts, lilac strappy flats and black fingerless gloves. Her wings were transparent and diamond-shaped. Her hair was pulled back into a braid with a black and purple butterfly-shaped clip.

She flew as quickly as she could to her parents' house, to find it in uproar- but not for the reason she expected.

"Mom's having the baby!" Talia exclaimed, wide-eyed. She had her hair cut short, just past her ears and was in a pair of green pyjamas.

Travis bustled out the door, carrying Milah in his arms and putting her in the car.

"Oh. Hello Kimberly dear. You're back early…" Travis said. "And why are you transformed?" He asked, puzzled.

Kimberly held up her iPhone on which a news alert from CBC Toronto appeared.

His and Talia's eyes widened.

"Talia, I'm calling your aunt Janna. She was already on her way up here, but with this now, she'll have to alter her speed. And Kimberly, call Shane. Get him to take you both to Hawaii _only when Janna gets here._ _Do __**not**_ leave Talia alone. And I have a feeling this is going to cause a lot of work for me at the consulate…" He sighed.

"_TRAVIS! GET IN HERE, __**NOW!**__" _Milah roared.

"Coming dear!" He said.

"Stay safe, girls."

He hugged his daughters before he left.

* * *

In Toronto, outside the television studio, there was a large flat screened television displaying everything going on in Hawaii at the time. Even though it was night, a crowd had gathered outside the studio, transfixed with the events on the television.

"Excuse me, coming through!" She shoved her way through the crowd.

When she reached the doors of the building a security guard stopped her.

"You can't pass!" He exclaimed.

"Oh yes I can! It's about the Total Drama contestants!" She said urgently.

"And what can you do about it?" He snapped.

"This." Marissa held her hands in front of her and made a water whip.

The guard stepped back in fright.

A blonde man wearing a business suit stepped out.

"What's going on out here?" He asked. He then saw Marissa using her Elemental magic and realized it was the same as what Bridgette was doing on the television now.

He mustered as calm a voice as he could. "Mark, let her in."

"Sure, Mr. Roberts." Mark gladly stepped aside and allowed her to pass.

"You know something about this?" Mr. Roberts asked.

"Yes. I am the one who trained Bridgette in how to use her powers. Meanwhile, what's the situation here?" She asked him.

"Panicked, excited, downright confused... The staff was watching the show in the Aftermath studio when it happened." He answered.

Marissa realized something. "Then why are you so calm?" She asked, puzzled.

"I've seen a lot of freaky things in my lifetime. I figured it was only a matter of time before something like this happened..." He shrugged.

He led her to the studio where the staff members were chattering excitedly about the events on the screen.

"**Everyone, listen up!**" Mr. Roberts yelled.

Everyone turned to him.

"This is-" He turned to her.

"Marissa Bryan." She filled in.

"Yeah. Anyway, she knows what is going on with the contestants." Mr. Roberts said.

The room immediately became silent.

"Thank you." Marissa said.

"As you can see, the contestants were attacked, specifically Gwen, Bridgette, Izzy, Heather and Lindsay. The man who did that is an evil wizard called Radcliffe who wants to defeat them _mostly _because of their Element powers. _Yes,_ I mean Elemental Powers. In magic, there are five Elements- Energy, Water, Fire, Earth and Air. Basically Keepers are the only ones who have the ability to control these Elements. Gwen can control Energy, Bridgette Water, Izzy Fire, Heather Earth and Lindsay Air. I am Bridgette's predecessor, being the previous active Water Keeper and all..." She demonstrated by forming an icicle and by making a water whip.

"I believe you now." One intern spoke up. "But what can we do?"

"We need to cut the live feed to the general public now. The world already knows quite a bit as it is. We can move on from there..." Marissa said.

She rummaged around in her pocket for her phone and called Paul.

Minutes later, he was there with her. His grey hair was completely shaved off and his brown eyes, normally bright, were now dark.

"This would be my husband Paul, in case you suddenly wondered where he came from…" She explained.

They just nodded in amazement.

Marissa's phone went off.

When she checked it, her eyes went wide and she looked at Paul with the same expression.

"I got a message from Travis. Milah's having the baby!" She exclaimed.

His expression soon mirrored hers.

"Why don't you go, darling? I can take care of things here." He said.

Marissa hesitated for a moment, apparently struggling to decide whether or not to stay.

"Fine. I'll go and I'll keep you updated!" She said, blowing a kiss as she bustled out the door.

* * *

Aideen was on a stage at a podium speaking to a crowd about the situation. Her husband William stood beside her with neatly styled silver-grey hair and dark green eyes looking grave.

"As you know, Radcliffe has officially managed to expose us, which as you can probably tell, is _**bloody fantastic...**_" She said.

The people in the hall looked at one another weirdly. In all their years of knowing her, they had never known this quiet Scottish woman to curse. Granted, she WAS the Fire Keeper, but still...

"We can't reverse this. This is too big an exposure for Nasira to do a Rewind. I know; I asked before I called you all here. This is the signal that Radcliffe will launch an all-out attack soon so we need to be prepared. If you have NMB relatives, you should probably put measures in place to make sure that they are safe. As for you, well any magic relatives living overseas ask them to what they can to help. If they want to fight when the time comes..." Aideen continued.

The room burst out in murmurs at this.

"Well then. Let's hop to it. Chop chop!" Aideen clapped her hands briskly and the people in the room got up and began running or using some other magical method to get out of the building.

Aideen and William were about to leave when they both got messages on their phones from Travis about their daughter being in labour.

"Radcliffe can wait. Right now, we're about to get another grandchild!" William exclaimed, putting away his phone.

"How right you are." Aideen said, pocketing hers.

"Shall we?" William held out his arm and as soon as Aideen grabbed it, they disappeared.

* * *

Deanna and her husband Troy, who was bald now and had dark grey eyes were sitting together relaxing and watching a movie when a news alert interrupted it showing Heather and the others flying away from the erupting volcano which was firing flaming boulders in all directions.

She sat up suddenly, wide-eyed and spilling the bowl of popcorn that was in her lap all over the place.

"WHAT THE HELL?" They shouted in unison.

At their shout, their family came running into the room.

"What's going on, Deanna?" Allison, her daughter-in-law asked. She was a beautiful woman, with platinum blonde hair and dark blue eyes.

Deanna merely pointed to the television set.

"Wow." Gianna, her fifteen year old granddaughter stared blankly at the television. Both she and her eleven year old brother Nathan shared the same dark hair of their father and the eyes of their mother.

"Whoa. He actually dared to do that?" Nathan asked surprised.

"It's Radcliffe. I don't think he cares…" Gianna said in a completely flat tone-of-voice.

"He's a piece of work." Tony groaned. "Do my brothers know yet?"

If they don't already, they will soon…" Troy muttered.

Deanna sat there fuming, too angry to even speak. "Heather and the others… they'd _**better **_destroy him!" She sat there shaking a fist before getting up to see what she could do.

* * *

Tokyo, Japan. A bustling hive of activity in the daytime. People were everywhere, crowding the sidewalks on their way to their various destinations.

Akari, Akina and Kimi were walking together, carrying various shopping bags and chattering in Japanese.

Akari's phone rang- playing some Japanese R & B song.

"Moshimoshi?" She held the phone to her head with her shoulder.

Akari's expression made Akina and Kimi look at one another worriedly as their mother listened to whoever was talking.

"No. Way. _**Are you kidding me?**_" She exclaimed.

Her daughters looked at each other.

"But what the- why would he? _Urgh!_ _**Watashi wa, watashi mo ikkan shita eigo o hanasu koto ga dekinainode, okotte nda yo!**_" She shrieked, stomping her foot, which made several people around her turn to stare.

"Watashi wa atode denwa suru yo…Akari stood there fuming as she hung up. **1)**

"Mum? What is it?" Akina rested a hand on her mother's shoulder.

"Your father just called me. Radcliffe's gone and exposed the girls on live TV! Attacked them right after Heather won the finale!" Akari exclaimed.

"WHAT?" The two sisters drew even more stares with their shout, and went wide-eyed.

"We should go back to the hotel. Vesta and the others are doing what they can now so she said we could stay here and do what we could before we leave in two days…" Akari raised her arm (covered in shopping bags!) and put her hand to her face, wiping it.

"Lindsay and the others had BETTER do some good ass-kicking when the time comes!"

* * *

"Joy. Now Radcliffe's done it. What are we going to do now?" Gwen said as she landed and set Cody down in front of the hotel, brushing herself off.

Izzy and Heather landed next with Bridgette and Lindsay landing last, setting down their 'passengers' carefully, all of whom were still wide-eyed at what they were witnessing.

"What just happened?" Geoff clutched his hat to his chest.

"Man I've seen some crazy stuff but _NOTHING_ and I mean _NOTHING_ can compare to _THAT!_" Chris exclaimed.

All of a sudden, Kimberly flew in carrying Shane.

"We just heard and we came straight here!" She explained by way of greeting as all the non-magic beings watched them in amazement as she set down her cousin.

"It's chaos everywhere!" Shane exclaimed.

"Yep. And mom went into labour a while before we left!" Kimberly exclaimed.

"Will she be all right?" Bridgette asked.

"Well dad took her to the hospital and both the grandmas are apparently on her way there so she _should_ be okay…" Kimberley said, looking worried.

Suddenly, a portal appeared nearby.

Everyone present tensed and Kimberly's hand glowed, ready to cast a spell if need be.

"Jane, weel you haul your ass out of my face?" A female French accent called out from inside it.

"It's not my fault! I've never carried so many people before! I had to go from England to France _and_ to _six_ different Canadian cities! Plus I don't even know the last time I saw anything earlier than six in the morning!" Another female voice, this time with an English accent called out angrily.

"Hello! I had to get up early too, _remember?_ Céline and Jacques are lucky- zey get to sleep een!" The French Female Accent replied.

"Yes, because Lydia and Oliver had to get up too." Female English Accent remarked sarcastically.

"Will you two stop quarrelling and just move?" A female voice called out that made Shane perk up.

"_Kyra?"_

"Ye-AAH!" She started to answer but…

Out of the portal fell eleven people, six females and five males.

When Kimberly saw who it was, she relaxed and de-transformed.

"Well that was embarrassing…" The girl who had the English accent spoke first.

"Who are you?" Gwen asked. She and the other Keepers were still tense.

"No worries, Gwen! These are some of the other Grandchildren of the 'Old' Keepers!" Shane said, going over to one of them who had her black hair pulled back in a short ponytail and light brown eyes.

"This is my sister Kyra!" He said, putting an arm around her shoulder. She waved.

"I'm Jane!" The English girl spoke next. She was petite, had light brown hair which straight and waist-length and she had dark blue eyes.

"Et je suis Amelie!" The French girl introduced herself. She was also petite and had curly, shoulder length dark brown hair and light green eyes.

"A.K.A. 'Ze most annoyeeeing girl evevair!'" Jane muttered under her breath.

"Are you mocking _mon accent?_" Amelie snapped.

"Perhaps…" Jane smirked.

Amelie growled.

"Woah, woah, woah. We don't need another fight, you two!" A boy with brown hair and brown eyes who wore glasses stepped forward and put a hand on Amelie's shoulder. "Calm down, cousin! No need to be so worked up! I'm Cameron." He said to the Keepers as he steered Amelie away from Jane because the two looked as if they were about to start quarrelling again.

A black girl with shoulder-length black-brown dreadlocks pulled back into a ponytail who wore glasses stepped forward, fiddling with the gloves on her hands.

"I'm Nadia. Glad to meet you, sorry about why though." She said, frowning slightly.

"NADIA!" Kimberly yelled, running up to her, startling everyone else.

"Kimmy! How's my favourite older cousin? I haven't seen you in so long!" Nadia said as the two hugged.

"So she's your favourite cousin Kimmy? What about us?" Two voices, male and female called out in unison.

Kimberly broke apart the hug. "How could I possibly forget my favourite twin cousins?" She went over to them next and stood between them, putting arm around each's shoulder.

"Better not let Marla and Carla hear you say that!" Nadia chuckled.

"I'm Adam!" The male who had messy bleached blond hair but with tell-tale auburn roots and two small hoop piercings in each ear grinned.

"And I know it's rather hard to believe that I'm related to _that_ walking fashion disaster, far less him being my twin-" She and Kimberly snickered at Adam's annoyed expression.

"-but I'm Leona, the much more intelligent, less fashion-challenged twin." She grinned.

"Less fashion challenged I agree with, but intelligent? It's really hard to compare you two. You both have the intelligence of a soggy piece of toast." Rika's voice remarked dryly.

"Very funny Rika, _very_ funny." They muttered in unison as Kimberly went off to talk to Amelie.

"Pay no attention those nuts. I'm Rika." She introduced herself. "And these two…" She grabbed twin boys, also Asian with messy black hair reaching just past their ears and pulled them towards her.

"HEY!" They cried out indignantly.

"Are my younger brothers Hiroshi-" She gestured to the one on her right. "-and Hitoshi." She gestured to the one on her left.

Another Asian boy, who was taller than them all, introduced himself next. "My name is Haru. Please ignore the crazy side of my family…" He said, attracting glares from his cousins.

"This is all well and good, but why are you all here?" Gwen asked, as people started gathering.

Shane, who was farthest away still managed to hear. "Let's go inside first!" He called out.

* * *

Radcliffe went back to his tower chuckling as he floated to his throne and sank into it.

"That was fun, don't you agree?" He asked the room at large.

All of his minions and higher-ups were present.

"Tell me, exactly what purpose was there in exposing them?" Serafina asked.

"Besides being amusing, it also makes things a lot harder for them, having magic exposed to a world that is so afraid of change." He slunk back into his throne even further.

"I must go. I'm sure Johan will be expecting me after what _you've_ done…" Serafina muttered, walking outside.

"I should probably go as well. My brother will be looking for me… " Ramon followed her.

"And now Marisela will know about this." Santos held his head in his hands.

"What became of my brother Alejandro?" José asked. "Not that I really care much. I'm just curious…"

"By now, magical authorities would have picked him up. But that's not really important. Now that I've upped the difficulty level for the Keepers to a major level, the next step will soon be put in place. Courtney, do you have what I gave you the last time you were here?" Radcliffe clasped his hands over his face and leaned forward.

"I sure do!" Courtney smirked. The marks on her skin, now that she was no longer taking the Liquid Masquerade, were returning in full force.

"Good. It will be time to unleash that soon. The Keepers will never know what hit them!"

Everyone else, who did not know what they were talking about looked on puzzled.

* * *

**1) **"Hello?"

"**I'm so angry I can't even speak coherent English!"**

"I'll call you later."

I use the romaji instead of kanji here so that those of you that don't know Japanese (neither do I- yay Google Translate!) can imagine how it sounds. Non-native Anglophone speakers, do you ever get so angry that you can't speak English properly and slip back into your native language? I do that with different English dialects but not a whole different language…

* * *

Oh gosh, my head hurt trying to get all the time zones correct in each part of the world mentioned in here! Math- not my forte. In case you are curious, for the purposes of this story, we shall say that Radcliffe revealed himself at 3 p.m. Honolulu time. It would be 9 p.m. in Ottawa, Toronto and New York.

It would be the next day in the other cities mentioned. 2 a.m. in Plymouth, 3 a.m. in Paris, 10 a.m. in Tokyo and 11 a.m. in Sydney. Just in case you are nuts about logistics and consistency like I am...

Anyway, I'm hoping you enjoyed this chapter as usual! I'm on an update roll! Don't know how long that's gonna last though...


	34. Exposure Aftermath

From here on out, Chef will be referred to as Samuel. And Alana will be called that when in her default form and be called Serafina when in that form. Just to dispel any confusion.

Also, I've been doing a lot of mass uploading/updating lately and I'd appreciate input on those stories which include a Winx Club (which heavily influences this story!)/Twilight crossover story which bashed the latter for giggles. Go check them out!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

The people in the lobby of the Hawaiian hotel watched the crowd of teenagers (plus Chris) walked through in amazement.

"Where are we headed?" Gwen asked.

"Take us to your new TV Lounge." Shane and Kimberly said in unison.

The Keepers led everyone inside and locked the doors, leaving the crowd and their cameras behind.

Shane put a spell around the magical beings so that the non-magical beings could not hear what they were saying and could only look on in shock.

"So first things first." Shane clasped his hands together and turned to his sister. "Kyra, why are you all here?"

"Well, Grandma, her fellow Keepers and all our parents were talking about what happened and we all wanted to come and help. They discussed it quickly and said that any of us who were sixteen or turning sixteen this year could come and help. After all, they were only sixteen when they became the Keepers…" Kyra explained.

Shane nodded. "Gwen." He turned to address the Energy Keeper. "I know that Kimberly and I have more experience in magic, growing up with it and all that, but you're the one's that gonna have to deal with any media and whatnot coming here now. That's your job, not ours." He gestured to himself and Kimberly.

Gwen nodded.

"Oh and another thing." Kimberly turned on the TV. "As you can expect, this is being aired all around the world." She began flipping through the channels. CNN, BBC, CBC… All the major networks of the world were now carrying footage of it. "So yeah, you're pretty much famous now. Well, even moreso than you already were anyway…" Kimberly shrugged.

"Oh no…" Gwen face-palmed.

"You know, something else just occurred to me…" Cameron said.

The others turned to look at him.

"Attacks against Canadian Citizens on American soil? Even though nether county- or any in this world for that matter- was responsible for it, the figurative links between them are sure to get sensitive. I'm sure neither government is going to be pleased, especially with any magical citizens that work for them. Heck, that applies to _**all**_ governments!" Cameron exclaimed.

Kimberly groaned. "Dad. He works for Foreign Affairs Canada! What's it going to be like for him?" She asked worriedly.

"Et ma maman! She may not be magique, mais she ees married to one and she works for the French government!" Amelie gasped in horror.

Something occurred to Bridgette and her eyes widened in horror.

"Our families! What about our families?" She gasped.

The other Keepers looked at one another in a horrid realization.

"Our parents are taking care of that. No problem! Your families are well protected…" Leona reassured them.

The Keepers did not look reassured at this.

Nadia glanced back at the non-magical people who were still looking on in awe.

"We should start explaining things to them…" She pointed out.

"And Ezekiel. You have some explaining to do as well…" Gwen looked at him.

"Of course, eh…" He watched as Shane lifted the spell surrounding them.

* * *

"So, what exactly is going on here?" Geoff took off his hat and looked at the Keepers in a mixture of fear and awe.

Gwen stepped forward and detransformed, motioning for the others to do the same.

"_Dude…"_ Duncan said in awe.

"It's a really long story…" Gwen started.

"This would be easier if we had Hasim here." Heather commented. "I can show the past, but only the past of the location I am at- what happened there earlier…"

"Who's this Hasim guy?" Owen asked.

"One of the most awesome people I will ever meet!" Izzy exclaimed.

"And he has powers over knowledge, meaning that he could transfer our memories of our journey to this point." Bridgette explained.

"My powers aren't quite the same as his, but I _might_ be able to do something…" Rika volunteered.

"It's probably better if we told them ourselves after all…" Gwen said.

Rika nodded in understanding and backed off, surveying them from the background like the other Old Keepers' grandchildren.

"It all started in Jamaica while Heather and I were on the beach doing whatever we were doing. Or perhaps a little earlier than that where the abilities we demonstrated today started revealing themselves in small ways that freaked us all out quite a bit, I'm sure…"

The other four Keepers nodded in agreement.

"So as I was saying, Heather and I were in Jamaica doing stuff when we noticed that no one around us moving. It was as if the world was paused. As if time itself was paused. Which it was."

"How is that possible? Freezing time?" LeShawna raised an eyebrow.

"How is it possible that we flew here?" Heather gestured to herself and the others. "How is it possible that we demonstrated _some_ of the other powers we have? How did Kimberly fly here with Shane in her grasp? How did the others appear out of a magic portal? How about you shut up and you'll find out, huh?" Heather snapped.

"Anyway…" Gwen continued before LeShawna could retort.

"The person responsible for that is Nasira, Hasim's wife. She is the Mistress of Time itself. Now when we realised that time had frozen, we naturally began to freak out, thinking that it was the other that was responsible for it."

"But it wasn't us. It was five women who we now hold in extremely high regard as do those you see behind us-" Gwen gestured to them. "As they are their grandmothers and our mentors/trainers. They explained to us that we had each been granted the ability to control an Element. Bridgette got the Water Element."

Bridgette demonstrated by forming a few bubbles in her hands and letting them float around the room.

"Izzy got the Fire Element- don't ask. We used to wonder why, but she can actually control it pretty well…" Gwen shrugged as Izzy demonstrated by turning her hair into flame for a brief moment.

"Heather can control the Element of Earth." The Earth Keeper demonstrated her power by making a nearby coconut tree extend itself to her and back, just as Deanna had done to demonstrate her power.

"And Lindsay here can control the Element of Air…"

Lindsay swiped her hand and the area around them immediately became windy.

"_Figures…"_ Duncan muttered under his breath.

"As for myself, there is a fifth Element, one which surpasses the other four: the Element of Energy." Gwen held up her hand as a swirling sphere of silver energy intertwined with electricity.

"Ooohhhh…" Some of the non-magical beings gasped in amazement.

"They took us to Canada via a portal and used this-" Gwen held up the Star and felt everyone's eyes on it. "To indicate who the other three keepers were besides Heather and I."

"After they explained to us what was happening and gave us a history of Keepers and magic with Nasira and Hasim's help, we became the Keepers of the Elements. Vesta is my trainer and Jane's grandmother. Marissa is Bridgette's trainer and is Nadia's grandmother and one of Kimberly's grandmothers, with Aideen- Izzy's trainer being her other grandmother as well as that of Shane, Kyra, Leona and Adam. Heather's trainer Deanna is Amelie and Cameron's grandmother and Akari, Lindsay's trainer is the grandmother of Haru, Rika, Hiroshi and Hitoshi."

"I can talk next if you want." Bridgette offered.

Gwen nodded and sank back as Bridgette started. "They told us that our job was to maintain the balance of good and evil within the magic realms. You see, The Milky Way is not the only galaxy or realm that exists. There are other planets within the magic realms that hold life. We have Erendor, Wispera, Spectra, Nadir- where Sierra is from..."

Sierra waved.

"…and Alma, where Nasira and Hasim are from. Unfortunately, Alma is also the home planet of the man that you saw appear on top of that mountain: Radcliffe."

The Old Keepers' grandchildren let out various noises of displeasure at this.

"Radcliffe is an evil immortal wizard who has been antagonizing the realms for over 800 years, ever since the first Keepers surfaced all the way back in 1210. He's blown up a planet- Zenith, lots of people died when that happened of course…"

Sierra spoke next. "As for me, I am not just Sierra the uber-fan. I've never been. My official title is actually Princess Sierra of Nadir and the heiress to the throne there…"

The other former contestants looked at her in disbelief.

"And this Radcliffe guy could have well caused a war between my planet and Queen Tiana's planet Spectra, the bastard…" Sierra muttered.

"Maybe we should take a break from all the explanations. This looks kinda overwhelming for them…" Heather said, noting the expressions ranging from disbelief to horror and to puzzlement on their fellow former contestants' faces.

* * *

"Will someone please tell me why my daughter has wings and we ended up here?"

The families of the Keepers had been taken to a large, highly guarded house somewhere in the middle of Canada and it was Heather's mother Misaki Aoki had spoken. She, her husband Daichi, Heather's older sister Jillian and younger brother Damien were also there.

"If you would just let us explain, then things would be a little clearer…" Anya said in a flat tone. She had curly blonde hair that was in a bun and dark brown eyes. Like her mother Aideen, she was on the short side.

"Let's hear what they have to say, shall we? I'm as worried about my own daughter as you are about yours!" Bridgette's mother, Emily Summers spoke. Her daughter looked just like her except Bridgette had lighter blonde hair and was slightly tanner.

"You're right, Emily…" Misaki sunk into a nearby chair.

Eric, Deanna's son was also present. He had neatly cut black hair with a grey streak on one side and dark grey eyes.

"Sorry there couldn't be more of us, but we're all preoccupied at the moment as you can see. One brother is in Edmonton and the other is in Paris…" Eric shrugged.

"And my brother is in Sydney and my sister is having a baby so they're obviously out, but that's not the point. You want to know why you're here..." Anya clasped her hands together.

"As you have seen today, magic exists and your daughters are all a part of that. Gwen, Bridgette, Izzy, Heather and Lindsay are the Keepers of the Elements, who are the only ones who can control the Elements of Energy, Water, Fire, Earth and Air. My mother Aideen was the last Fire Keeper and Eric's mother Deanna was the previous Earth Keeper…"

As Anya and Eric ran through a history of magic, everyone present paid rapt attention.

Lindsay's parents Mr and Mrs Kenneth and Lydia Mills looked quite as excited as their other daughters Lindsay's older sisters Paula and Amber listened closely.

Gwen's mother Marie Callahan and her younger brother Matthew sat close to each other as they listened.

Izzy's parents Mr and Mrs Kenneth and Claire Andrews and her older brother Raymond (who looked rather gruff!) were also there.

"So…" Anya wrapped up the long tale. "I'm guessing you have lots of questions…"

They all nodded.

"Of course…" Eric rolled his eyes.

* * *

On Alma, in the conference room, all the leaders and Immortals were present. Even the Aequori mermaids were able to take part through a spell that Alyssa set up that would allow them to see what was going on in the meeting room.

"He's never done this before, exposing the Keepers so why now?" President Tavares wondered.

"Maybe he's trying to make things harder for them. It _would_ be rather difficult for them to get away now that the entire world knows about them…" Serafina said in a completely flat tone.

"Couldn't you do a Rewind, Nasira?" Jamilah asked.

"I wish that was the case, but that's not quite possible this time. The exposure is too far gone. Besides if I were do a Rewind, who would stop Radcliffe from making his entry again?" Nasira pointed out.

Adara sighed. "Much more difficult than ruling a planet, trying to bring this situation under control is…"

Tiana nodded in agreement. "Seriously. And I have school to balance as well as ruling. In fact, I was just finishing up some assignments when I got the call about this meeting…"

"I know! I was having _**so**_ much fun destroying my Chris McLean memorabilia…" Adara commented.

"So... Back to the matter at hand. I can send some of my merpeople to patrol the waters of my kingdom to make sure he doesn't try anything here…" King Rohan suggested. He was holding a bronze trident in his hand that glowed softly.

"Good idea. We're going to need to step up security on all the planets and their regions. I suggest we end this meeting soon and meet with our sub-rulers and see what they have to say about this…" Aurora suggested.

"Michael and Miranda already spoke to me briefly before I left, but we haven't fully decided anything with the other subrulers either…" Tiana said.

* * *

As all of this was going on, Radcliffe was in his castle reading in his library when he heard noises outside.

"What is this?" He floated outside to see Carl wheezing and coughing on the floor.

"Your little servant Carl here seems to be feeling the brunt of the work you've been giving him lately…" Courtney said in disgust.

"His time is almost up it seems… Just as the Keepers' time is almost up as well. The time to use that cube I gave you is almost here…" Radcliffe grinned.

* * *

"So Ezekiel, _how_ are you involved anyway?" Gwen turned to him, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, my family has always been in charge of Canada's magical library, eh?" he started.

"Go on…" Gwen said.

"So it's going to be no different for me. We first got involved with Radcliffe when he tried to attack the Library of Magic in Manitoba. There are lots of valuable magical items in there including books, scrolls, documents, not to mention the Keeper Portrait hall is located in there so it was a "Defend At All Costs" situation…" He continued.

The Keepers raised an eyebrow at this.

"He tried to get to it while we were filming Total Drama Island, right after we got there… I had to leave the show and get away so I could help. I had to be eliminated _somehow..._"

Lindsay gasped. "You mean, you're not really sexist?"

"Of course not! Why would I be when some of the most powerful people I know are women, eh?" Ezekiel chuckled at the faces of almost everyone in the room.

"So I knew the best way to get off at that point was to piss off _someone_, so I pretty much just threw out those offensive remarks and it worked. I do apologise sincerely for those by the way… But that meant I was free to go home and help them fend off Radcliffe. My family and I succeeded, but not before Radcliffe put a curse on me, causing me to slowly evolve into the insane, Gollum-like creature I became later on in World Tour…" Ezekiel finished.

"Thai is some story…" Chris said in awe.

Just then Kimberly's phone rang and she stepped aside to answer it.

"Hello dad." She said nervously.

"_Kimberly dear! Do you hear that?"_ On Travis' end of the line, there was a baby's cry.

"Yes…" Kimberly said quietly.

"_That's your younger brother Ethan Nicholas Bryan…"_ Kimberly could detect the pride in her father's voice.

Kimberly felt thrilled. "Send me a picture?" She asked excitedly.

"_Of course! As soon as you hang up!"_ Travis said happily.

"Well then I've gotta go!" She said cheerfully.

She hung up.

"What's was that all about, Kim?" Shane asked.

"Nadia, Kyra, Leona, Adam come on over here…" She called them over to another room.

"What is it? Is it about the baby?" Nadia asked.

"Uh-huh…" The phone buzzed and she glanced at the picture shown for a moment.

"Meet the newest member of our family…" She held up the picture so that her cousins could see.

"D'aww!" All the girls cooed when they saw Milah in bed in a hospital gown, holding a tiny bundle wrapped in blue out of which a little light brown fist protruded. Travis leaned in right next to her gazing down at the baby as well.

"That's my brother, your cousin Ethan Nicholas Bryan…" Kimberly beamed.

"Adorable!" Leona cooed.

"I need to go out! I need to celebrate this!" Kimberly exclaimed, putting her phone away.

"We're all happy about Ethan and all, but Kimberly, are you sure it's _safe _to leave right now?" Shane asked.

"Well I'm not letting Radcliffe keep me cooped up in here, am I?" Kimberly raised an eyebrow.

"I'm going- don't know if you'll come, but I most certainly am going for a walk!" She declared.

Shane looked at the others and sighed. "Oh fine, we'll come with."

"Great!" Kimberly was practically bouncing on her heels.

"Hey guys!" Kimberly pulled the other Old Keeper grandchildren and the Keepers aside.

"Great news: I officially have a little brother!" Kimberly announced proudly.

"That's fantastic!" Bridgette hugged her. "Tell Travis and Jamilah congratulations!"

"As from us!" Gwen smiled slightly.

"And us of course!" The other Grandchildren exclaimed.

"I know you girls are going to have to stay and explain things a bit more as well as keep guard, but I'm going out with my cousins." Kimberly said to the Keepers. "I don't know if any of the others will come…"

"Of course we are!" Jane declared.

"Great. Let's head out then…" Kimberly led them out the door.

* * *

Courtney was in her own room of Radcliffe's castle catching up on magical history through the books there when the cube that she had been given by Radcliffe began to glow and shake.

"_**What the hell?" **_She used her magic to keep hold of it and she floated it out in front of her as she took it to Radcliffe.

"What's the deal with this thing?" Courtney's eyebrows were raised as she used her magic to hand it over to Radcliffe. As soon as he caught it in his hands, it stopped shaking, but the symbols on it still glowed.

"I think that what's in here has officially decided that it wants to be released…" Radcliffe smirked.

Courtney looked surprised for a moment, but then quickly recovered.

He tossed the cube back to her.

"I think it's time we took a little Hawaiian vacation, don't you?" He smirked, using a spell to call his staff to him.

* * *

Kimberly, Rika, Kyra, Nadia, Leona, Amelie and Jane were walking along the streets talking. They had separated from the boys who had decided to check out an electronics store they saw earlier.

"I was barely two and a half years old when my brothers were born, so I wouldn't really remember that. I have of course, seen the pictures." Rika said.

"I remember when Talia used to be so innocent. When she never used to play pranks on me, when she was actually nice... Now, you want evil? Ask Talia. Little brat turned my hair pinker than Stephanie from LazyTown one day!" Kimberly seethed at the memory.

"_Little_ brat, Kim? Isn't Talia turning fourteen in September?" Leona raised an eyebrow.

"Doesn't stop her from being the evil little creature that she is…" Kimberly shrugged. "Let's hope that Ethan doesn't turn out that w…"

"Um girls, speaking of evil…" Nadia and Jane tapped Kimberly and Leona on the shoulders.

"What?" They turned around sharply.

"I- oh boy..." Kimberly said, eyes growing wide.

Radcliffe and Courtney were striding up the street, blasting people out of their way indiscriminately.

"Ladies, you know what to do!" Kimberly exclaimed, transforming.

Amelie, the only other fairy in the group also transformed. She wore a pale yellow tank-top, jeans minishorts with pale yellow leggings beneath and a matching bandana in her hair. She also wore pale yellow high-top sneakers and white knee-high socks. Her wings were white and oval-shaped.

Nadia, who apparently had Prehensile Hair, used some of it to hoist herself into the air as she got ready to fire off a spell.

Leona and Kyra turned into a lioness and tigress respectively, roaring rather ferociously.

Both of Jane's hands glowed with a grey light, ready to cast spells.

Rika's hands also glowed in her power colour of dark purple, but her eyes glowed the same colour as well.

"Hello ladies. How are you enjoying Hawaii?" Radcliffe asked, firing a spell at them.

"We'd enjoy it a lot better if you weren't here!" Jane said, firing back a spell.

Radcliffe deflected it with a swipe of his staff. "Now, now, don't be like that!"

"How about we be like this then?" Nadia asked, firing off random spells rapidly at him, all of which he deflected without breaking a sweat.

Nadia's eyes widened.

Courtney swiped her hand and bees appeared, flying straight towards them.

As Rika ran, she used her magic to send a message to her brothers, holding her hands in front of her as they glowed.

"_Hiroshi, Hitoshi, we need your help! Radcliffe and Courtney have attacked us downtown! I- AAH!"_ Rika screamed as a spell from Courtney dragged her back.

"RIKA!" The girls screamed and ran/flew towards her, but rapid-fire spells from both Courtney and Radcliffe stopped them in their tracks.

"We can't let them take her!" Leona, who had resumed a human form exclaimed.

"They won't."

Kimberly and Amelie flew forward, as fast as their wings would carry them and sucker-punched Courtney right in the nose and stomach respectively, breaking her hold on Rika.

"WOAH!" The other girls exclaimed in awe.

"OW! YOU BITCHES!" Courtney, eyes watery from the pain and clutching her now bloodied nose and sore stomach screamed out.

"Oh yeah? Well then, we're bitches with standards, which is certainly more than what we could say for you..." Kimberly said calmly, holding up her hands, ready to cast more spells.

"GO KIM AND MELIE!" The others cheered as Rika ran towards them.

"You should not have done that..." Radcliffe said coolly, powering up his staff.

* * *

In the electronics store, Hiroshi, Hitoshi and Shane were in one aisle examining laptops.

"I'm more of an HP person…" Shane commented.

The twins raised eyebrows at him. "We all know that Dell computers are pretty durable…" Hiroshi said.

Hitoshi stared at his brother. "Roshi, how could you betray me like this? I thought you were a Toshiba person too!" He exclaimed.

Shane rolled his eyes but then glanced up to see a purple sphere of light phase through the store windows and head towards them.

All the non-magical customers in the store stared at it as the other Keeper Grandsons walked over to the trio.

Hitoshi eyed it. "That's odd. Why would Rika need to send a…"

Before he could finish his question, it was answered as the orb projected Rika's voice into the store, cutting off in the middle of her scream.

They grew pale and the others had various expressions of horror or anger on their faces.

"What are we waiting for people? Let's go! MOVE IT, MOVE IT!" The Keeper Grandsons ran out of the store, leaving several terrified looking staff members and customers behind in their wake.

* * *

Back at the Hawaiian hotel, Gwen was sitting with her friends among the former contestants when she got a vision.

Heather glanced over at her form where she was seated with Cody and Sierra.

"Gwen, I know that look. What did you see?" She called out.

Everyone turned to look at her.

"Trouble downtown. We need to go!" Gwen exclaimed, transforming.

The other Keepers did the same.

"Care to explain _**what's going on?**_" Geoff asked.

"No time, Geoff. We have to go!" Bridgette said as she flew through the portal Gwen had created.

* * *

Back in town, people were screaming and running out of the way as the fight continued. Amelie, Nadia, Leona, Kyra, Jane and Rika were facing off against Courtney while Kimberly fought as best as she could against Radcliffe himself.

"You wait until the Keepers get here! They are going to mop the floor with you, just like my grandmas and the other Keepers of their time did!" Kimberly exclaimed, firing off a spell.

"Oh Kimberly, I beg to differ on that one. You see, I have a wild card that they just may not have seen coming…" Radcliffe smirked.

"Courtney, the cube, now!"

"With pleasure!" Courtney threw the cube into the air and hit it with a blast of black magical energy.

The cube began to get bigger, twisting and turning and eventually coming apart, in a blast of red, blue, green and white light.

The Keepers and other magical beings made an appearance as male figures solidified around Courtney in each beam of light.

The figure formed in green light was the tallest of the lot, with brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a monocle.

The figure formed in red light was the second tallest, with spiky black hair and blue eyes.

The third figure, formed in white light was the third tallest, with neat blond hair and dark blue eyes.

The last figure, formed in blue light was the shortest, with curly dark brown hair, blue eyes and tan skin. His smile was eerily close to that of the joker.

All four figures wore black cloaks.

"Ahh. Free at last…" The last figure stretched and smirked at the (mostly!) terrified figures below him.

"What the hell are those guys?" Gwen raised an eyebrow.

"Oh us?" The third one powered up, as did the others.

They, along with Courtney, after getting the nod from Radcliffe, combined their powers together.

"_We're your worst nightmare…"_ He said, as they fired off five spells at each of the Keepers, who dodged and hovered where they were in shock as they observed the aftereffects.

"Holy crap…" Heather's eyes widened.

**_These guys had used Elemental spells…_**

* * *

We're getting closer and closer to the end. I must thank ShonenJump4eva for the use of his characters introduced here.

This will probably be my last update for a bit as my end-of-semester exams start tomorrow. Totally not looking forward to those…

So review everyone and I will hopefully update again before Christmas!


	35. Open War

I apologise so much for the long wait! First it was exams, then it was travelling to Jamaica (Where I still am!), Christmas, Election Day here was yesterday… So much has been going on!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

"Holy Sweet Flying Spaghetti Monster…" Haru said in awe, his expression mirroring that of the other Keeper Grandchildren, Sierra, Cody and Ezekiel.

"Guys! Get out of here and take the contestants back at the hotel with you!" Gwen commanded.

They all scattered off in different directions.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the latest generation of Keepers. How are you ladies doing?" The third one to be released said.

They all just stared at them incredulously as Radcliffe disappeared without them noticing.

"I don't believe you've introduced themselves." Courtney said. "Care to do that?"

"Of course, Lady Courtney. Where _are_ my manners? I am the Honker from Hell- Honker for short, this is Montage-" He gestured to the shortest one, who still had the Joker-esque smile. "And we've also got Flexi Dan (we call him Dan mostly…)" He gestured to the one introduced in green light. "And last but not least, Venom Man." He pointed to the one introduced in red light.

"All together, we are the JAADSian Lords, but enough with the formalities. We've been waiting for YEARS to do this!" He fired a blast of wind at Lindsay, Montage fired ice darts at Bridgette, Dan summoned a large boulder and Venom turned both his hands into flame.

Their respective Keepers flew off to engage them in battle while Gwen and Courtney were left behind, glaring down each other.

"Bring it." Courtney held up her fists, pulsating with black energy.

"Gladly." Gwen smirked, holding up her fists glowing with her own silver energy.

As they flew towards each other, to those below, it looked like an atomic explosion as the two collided.

* * *

Bridgette and Montage faced each other down, a determined look on the Water Keeper's face as she glowed brightly.

Clenching her fist, she swiped her hand in front of her, releasing a fury of large ice blocks towards her opponent, who punched through them as if they were blocks of cotton candy instead.

Bridgette took a position as if to bow to her opponent, but suddenly lifted a giant water whip out of nowhere and she directed it towards him, slamming him into the ground and dragging him along, making a giant trench there.

* * *

Izzy snarled at Venom, who just hovered in front of her, oddly calm.

"Hello Isabella. I see you're going to put up a fight. Too bad it won't last that long…" Venom said.

Izzy raised an eyebrow. "Oh? I beg to differ!" She flew towards him and punched him out with a flaming fist.

"And don't call me Isabella." She snarled.

"Who's going to stop me… _Isabella?_" Venom smiled a taunting smile.

Izzy turned herself into pure flame and rushed towards him.

* * *

Heather and Dan were locked in fierce battle.

Heather was throwing boulder after boulder at him, but he punched through them with ease.

"Oh come on Heather! You can do better than that!" He cackled.

"You're right. I can." She raised her hands above her head and made several vines twist around Dan's body and throw him out far into the distance.

She barely had time to react as several boulders came out of nowhere and she had to pull some complicated flying moves to avoid them all.

"You're _insane!_" Heather exclaimed, wiping the hair out of her face.

"Thanks for the compliment!" His arms shout out towards her, becoming rubbery like.

Heather shot up into the air and turned her hands into blades.

"Bring it, psycho!" She beckoned to him.

* * *

"How strange it is that my counterpart in terms of Element is less competent than I am?" Honker mused.

"I beg to differ, Honker!" Lindsay lifted her hand and a tornado raged towards him, which he quickly deflected.

"Really now?" He sent a blast of air that slammed Lindsay into a nearby tree, making her fall to the ground.

She groaned as she tried to push herself up.

"Had enough, little girl?" Honker smiled down at her.

Lindsay suddenly swiped her hand and sent _him_ slamming into an even bigger tree.

She stood up and brushed herself off. "Have _you_ had enough?" She smirked.

* * *

"Thank goodness we're outta there…" Leona breathed a sigh of relief as they found themselves inside Playa Des Losers 2.

"Not bad…" Cameron mused, looking around casually.

"Now what though?" Nadia asked.

"I don't know…" Shane shook his head, looking worried.

"Hey Jane, can you send me back to Ottawa? I really want to check on how my family is doing…" Kimberly said.

"Of course!" Jane held up her hands and a portal appeared behind Kimberly.

"Thanks. Try not to kill Amelie in the meantime, won't you?" She said as she stepped through the portal and disappeared.

"Can't make any guarantees…" Jane grumbled.

"Seriously, are you sure that you two aren't in love or something? You girls are always bickering and in the BST kind of way!" Adam exclaimed.

Jane and Amelie looked scandalized.

Rika's eyes widened in surprise at Adam's words. "Seriously? Even _Adam _noticed that? You two will totally be together someday!"

Amelie deadpanned. "Did you see zis in a vision?"

"Nope. But then again, no one needs magical powers to see that." Rika teased.

"Can we please get back to more important matters? Like Radcliffe for instance?" Jane huffed.

"She's right." Hitoshi walked over and put an arm around her shoulder. "We can bother her about her obvious lesbian affair later…" He grinned.

Jane and Amelie flung him into a couch with a spell, knocking it over.

Shane glared.

"Seriously, let's get down to business!" He declared.

"_To defeat- the Huns!"_ Hitoshi and Hiroshi sang in unison.

Shane narrowed his eyes at them before turning to their older cousin. "Haru, if you will?"

"With pleasure." The oldest Japanese-Canadian boy turned to his cousins and cast a spell on them.

They opened their mouths and tried to speak, but no sounds came out.

"Thank you!" Rika exclaimed.

Her brothers pouted and sank into nearby chairs.

In all of this, they seemed to have forgotten that the former Total Drama contestants were still there, until they all gave a big _"AHEM!"_

"Oh, right, you all are still here…" Kyra said.

"What the hell are we supposed to do now?" LeShawna exclaimed. "I don't just wanna sit around here feeling useless because we ain't got no magic powers like y'all!" She folded her arms around her chest.

The magical people all looked at one another.

"Well, this isn't a case for us…" Ezekiel said finally.

"Yeah, we would probably have to ask the 'rents what we could do first…" Adam scratched behind his head.

"Where are they all now, Shane?" Leona asked.

"My dad's house?" Nadia offered. "Aunt Janna lives nearby, but she's still in Ottawa helping out with the newest cousin, but dad is the closest one to here after that, but then, he's not even in Canada…"

"Should we take all these people?" Jane folded her arms across her chest and raised an eyebrow.

"No need for that, dear." A male voice said.

When they all looked around, they saw that a man with neat, dark brown hair and light blue eyes had spoken and he was leading a few adults.

"Dad, what are you doing here?" Jane asked in surprise, running to hug him.

"I had a feeling we should check up on you…" Alan Rosier smiled. "Besides, Miranda said she'd be fine looking after your brother and sister for a bit even with all of this…"

"As you can see, Nadia, I am back in Canada." A tall black man dressed in a business suit leaned in the doorway.

"Dad!" She ran to him.

Amelie spotted her father Adrian, Adam and Leona spotted their father Derek who was a man with short, curly auburn hair and brown eyes.

"Haru, you have not noticed me? I too am back in Canada!" Akina walked up to him.

"Mother! How have you been?" He asked happily.

Hiroshi and Hitoshi rolled their eyes at this.

"Don't pretend you're not like that with our mum too…" Rika commented dryly.

Her brothers reddened and their aunt chuckled at this.

Even Ezekiel's parents Katherine and James were present. They were simply dressed and Ezekiel basically looked like a younger version of his father while his mother had curly blonde hair and dark blue eyes.

"Well, dad. LeShawna and the others were asking if there was anything they could do about this whole situation…" Jane trailed off.

Alan looked back at the others.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" He asked them.

They stood there looking puzzled for a while, but their faces soon dawned in recognition.

"I think I do…" Derek smirked as he held up a glowing hand.

* * *

"This is just too good…" Radcliffe smirked, watching the fights between the Keepers and their enemies through the giant sphere in the room which he had given Courtney the cube in.

Then something caught his eye.

_On Spectra, Nero and Xuamine were approaching the royal palace when they were surrounded by several guards, some of them also vampires, wearing their protective robes._

"_Nero and Xuamine Malvie, you are under arrest for Treason, using Mind Control, Breaking and Entering, Theft and many other offences that I could also list, but will take all day..." One of the guards said, putting handcuffs on the two vampires._

_However, when Nero and Xuamine tried to struggle free, the handcuffs shocked them._

"_Not only do they act against struggle, they also nullify your powers so there's no use trying to use them!" He informed then._

_They both began to go full vampire mode, snarling in rage, fangs lengthening, eyes reddening, but the handcuffs shocked them again._

"_HOW? HOW THE HELL DID THEY FIGURE OUT WHAT WE DID?" Xuamine snarled._

"_I DON'T KNOW! I WASN'T THE ONE TO LET ANYTHING SLIP!" Nero yelled._

_Tiana and Carlos watched this from a balcony of the palace, him putting an arm around the waist of the Spectran queen. Marcus, Miranda, Michael with an arm around Nélessea's shoulder, Chandler and a few other royal officials were with them._

"_Can you imagine what would have happened if their plan hadn't been revealed?" Miranda asked._

"_I would rather not." Michael said firmly, tightening his grip on his daughter._

"_Neither would I..." Carlos said, pulling Tiana closer to him._

_People began looking out their buildings to see what the commotion was and watched in amazement as Nero and Xuamine were hauled off into waiting vehicles which were specially enforced for the newly caught vampire criminals._

"How the hell would they have been found out?" Radcliffe wondered. "Nero isn't that stupid as to let something slip and if he were, Xuamine would have kept him in check…"

"Something is just not adding up here. No one should have known of their true alignment. Where did I go wrong?"

A picture of Prince Ramon swirled around on the sphere.

Radcliffe's expression changed to an unreadable one.

"_Hmm… I wonder…"_ He thought.

"Time to call a meeting of my generals I think. Courtney will have to stay where she is though…" The image changed to that of her and Gwen still fighting furiously, now with a few scratches and bruises.

* * *

"Hello all. I'm sure you're wondering why I called you here at such short notice…" Radcliffe strolled down between rows on either side of him made up of his generals and minions alike.

They all looked at one another.

Radcliffe saw this. "I will take that as a yes." He commented. "Anyway, you will notice that two of the generals are missing. Nero and Xuamine Malvie, who were in charge of the Spectran sector of the takeover were just taken into custody by Spectran authorities."

Many of them looked surprised, but there were a few noticeable exceptions, who managed to have an impassive expression- Alana and Ramon.

"You see, it occurred to me that the Malvies would not have been found out unless someone within this very room leaked certain details to the Spectran government and I _will_ find out which one of you it was, make no mistake about that…"

"And when I do…" Radcliffe powered up his staff and fired it at Carl, who fell to the ground, instantly dead.

"Except it will be much more painful than that. I make myself clear here?" He slunk back in his throne.

Everyone looked at one another nervously as they left.

When they were out of the room, Alana drew Ramon into another room and flung him into a wall.

"Ouch! What was that for?" He moaned.

"You ratted them out, didn't you?" Alana snarled/whispered.

"So what if I did? You told me to!"

"Not yet you incompetent twat, not yet! We had to make sure we were home clear before Radcliffe found out! I should have never let you onto this!"

"If I hadn't Spectra would have been under Radcliffe's control by now!" He whispered back angrily.

"Don't talk to me like that. I'm old enough to be your mother one and two I've been working towards this before you were even born!" She exclaimed, grabbing him by the collar and shaking him hard.

"Well, well, well, this is interesting…" Radcliffe leaned in the doorway with his arms folded across his chest and his staff, which was glowing, clutched in one hand.

Ramon's eyes widened, but Alana straightened up and stood her ground, looking quite calm.

"What an interesting conversation I overheard. Alana Renaldi and Prince Ramon trying to fight against _me?_ Now there's a laughable idea. I didn't see it coming admittedly, but laughable nevertheless…" Radcliffe chuckled.

"You know Alana, you're quite like your mother. Both in looks and personality…" He commented.

"Don't give me that _crap._ For one thing, I have no family for you to threaten so you have no hold on me whatsoever." Alana said calmly.

"One thing though? Why revenge against me? I didn't kill Melanie, did I?"

"Maybe not, but you were indirectly responsible for her death. She died fighting for you because if she didn't fight, I would be dead now!" As Alana spoke, she fiddled with the bracelet behind her back and caught Ramon's eye.

At once, he morphed into a rocket and flew straight into Radcliffe, slamming him into the opposite wall and Alana darted past him.

"Come on!" Ramon yelled, morphing back.

"Don't have to tell me that twice, young boy!" Alana said.

"Boy? I'm a man!" Ramon exclaimed indignantly.

"SHUT UP AND RUN!" She screamed at him.

Radcliffe threw down his staff which morphed into the snake and chased after them.

"You two deserve worse- than- death!" He snarled, sending spell after spell after them which collided with random pillars, instantly disintegrating.

He swiped the staff and it narrowly missed hitting the two.

Alana morphed into Serafina as she ran and fiddled with the bracelet that Radcliffe gave her.

He swiped the staff once again, but Serafina had disappeared with Ramon just as the spell hit where they were standing seconds earlier.

She hit the ground in Saurian breathing heavily and noticed that the bracelet she was wearing was now beeping loudly.

She immediately took it off and threw it into the sky where it promptly exploded.

"Close call, but we're not safe yet…" She turned around and saw Nasira, Hasim and President Tavares along with other security personnel heading towards them.

She looked around to see where Ramon was and what she saw made her skin crawl.

The spell that Radcliffe had sent last _had _hit one of them after all.

Ramon's legs were sliced off jaggedly and said legs were thrown far away from where he lay, breathing heavily and breaking out in a sweat.

"_My guess is that he was aiming for our heads…"_ She thought, allowing herself a shudder.

"What happened here Serafina?" President Tavares asked as the security personnel rushed to Ramon and began doubling as medical personnel for the young prince.

"It's a long story, Johan. I can't tell you here…" Serafina said wearily, noting Hasim giving her an odd look.

He walked up to her and placed a hand on her forehead.

"We can wait, _Alana…_" He said accusingly, now with an even more serious expression in his face and folding his arms across his chest.

President Tavares' eyes widened in shock as he looked back and forth between Serafina and Hasim.

"Wait. You mean, _she's_ Alana Renaldi?" He asked in surprise.

"Yes…" Nasira looked at Serafina with an even sterner expression as usual as she was hauled up by security personnel and escorted away, changing into her default form, now too weak to hold her Serafina disguise.

"We need to get the Keepers here…" Hasim commented.

"We'll go!" Alyssa exclaimed, gesturing to herself, Jamilah and Samuel, who had been standing aside watching this. Marcus was still on Spectra dealing with matters there.

They nodded as they disappeared.

* * *

The Keepers were all getting tired out fighting their opponents for so long.

"Tired?" Courtney asked Gwen.

"You wish." Gwen swiped at her and Courtney dodged.

At that moment, Courtney and the other opponents of the Keepers received messages from Radcliffe.

"_All of you, get back here, NOW!"_ He called.

"I'd love to stay and chat Gwen, but I've gotta go." Courtney smirked as she disappeared.

With Bridgette, she held up an ice shield and as Montage as about to send a super sharp icicle her way, he received the message.

"You know, this could have been fun, but alas, duty calls. So long!" He grinned as he waved, sending the icicle towards her and disappearing.

She had to abandon the shield and fly out of the way as the icicle pierced it.

"_What was that all about?"_ She thought.

"Have you had enough, Lady Isabella?" Venom asked the Fire Keeper.

"STOP CALLIMG ME ISABELLA, DAMMIT!" Izzy roared, sending two flaming fists at him, but he disappeared before they could make impact.

"What the f-" Izzy hovered in mid-air looking puzzled.

Heather sent clouds of dust at her opponent but when it cleared, he disappeared.

"Where did he go?" Heather looked around her, tensing up.

"I'm not giving up!" Lindsay exclaimed.

"I wouldn't expect you to. You're too stupid to quit!" Honker said calmly.

Lindsay twitched, before sending a tornado his way, but before it could hit him, he disappeared.

"_What's going on?"_ She wondered.

She flew back to where it all started there to find the other Keepers flying there as well.

Heather was doubled over, taking in deep breaths.

"Insane. Dan- is- absolutely- INSANE!" She breathed.

"Aren't they all?" Bridgette wiped her face.

"Thank goodness you're all right!"

They whipped around to see Alyssa, Jamilah and Samuel appear in front of them.

"You're needed in Saurian, now!" Samuel said.

"Did they start attacking there?" Gwen asked wearily.

"Not yet…" Jamilah said.

"But we did find out something important that you girls have to know!" Alyssa exclaimed.

"Come, quickly!" Alyssa gestured for them to come close to them and they all immediately disappeared.

* * *

"Change of plans, people change of plans." Radcliffe paced in front of Courtney and the Lords.

They followed his every move with their eyes.

"As you know, Alana and Ramon were really the friends of the other side and that has caused a major dent in my plan. But never fear, things will just have to move quicker than usual. We have to launch an all-out attack _now. _Courtney, Montage, Venom, Dan, Honker, here's the plan…" He led them away into another room.

* * *

This is more of a setup chapter than anything else. Things get back into high gear in the next chapter and let's just say that the ending of the next chapter made even _me_, the writer of this story cry…

So review everyone and I hope you guys see me with an update soon!


	36. Final Battle Part 1

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

Nexus was a strange place compared to all the worlds in the magical dimension.

Upon first entry, one is amazed at how different it is.

For one thing, the ground wasn't exactly together as it normally would be. Pieces of it were spread out over the land and they floated.

If one looked below this strange ground, one would see that it as well as the surrounding sky was a dreary looking sort of grey and the clouds were always black.

If you did not go inside the buildings there, you would not know that those who had died and came back as ghosts had their own sub realm decorated to suit their tastes when they had died and how they changed since then.

The ghosts there all had a pearly grey glow around them, were semi-transparent and some of them even looked almost normal.

Then there were of course the others who had died violently and or suddenly...

In the middle of all this strangeness sat a large, black stone castle.

Inside this castle, floating aimlessly around was a tall, willowy female ghost with long black hair pulled into a Sailor Moon-esque style and wearing a simple silver circlet with black diamonds all around it. Her dark grey eyes surveyed them with an air of weariness.

She wore simple black robes, a dark grey waist belt and sliver hoop earrings. She had no legs, but instead a silvery mist where legs would be.

Her hands had long, slightly curved black fingernails and in the right one she held a black scythe with a silver blade.

Another ghost floated up to her.

"Queen Vasillisa, we have a new arrival…" He bowed to her.

She nodded and followed the ghost.

At the very gates of Nexus, Carl was floating. Ironically, he looked much healthier as a ghost than when he was alive. His hair was dark blonde and curly and his eyes were no longer maroon, but dark brown.

"Free of him at last!" He stretched. "But I just had to die, didn't I?" He muttered.

"Yes. It was your time." Vasillisa appeared suddenly in front of him, speaking in an eerie tone.

He shuddered.

"Let's see…" She swiped her scythe and a large, black leather-bound book appeared in the air, spinning around before she caught it with both hands. The scythe floated at her side.

"Carl Ambrose Riximos. Place of Birth: Lasiandra, Nadir, Date of Birth: 1st August, 1955, Date of Death…" Her long fingernail went down the book. Ah. 29th April, 2010. Cause of Death: Killing Curse cast by the Immortal Radcliffe…"

She smiled slightly. "He won't be Immortal for much longer…" She said.

Carl perked up at this. "Really?"

"Indeed, indeed. I have ways of monitoring an Immortal's life force and although I cannot destroy any of them, I can certainly see if their life force is weakening and his is at the level of a mere mortal now. I've been waiting for him to get here ever since he first turned to the dark side…" She rubbed her hands together and she smiled a sinister smile.

* * *

When the Keepers left Earth, they re-appeared inside an auditorium, which was decorated in Alma's national colours.

Its seats were arranged in a semi-circle around a raised platform and in front of the seats, there was a section resembling a jury box.

In the front of that, in the very centre of the room, they saw a large, uncomfortable-looking metal chair.

"You're going to need a change of attire." Alyssa said, looking back at the Keepers in their ordinary clothes.

She snapped her fingers and the Keepers were suddenly wearing black skirt suits with a vest in their signature colour beneath.

The other three Immortals changed their clothes to something more appropriate as well.

"This is where we come back to in about half an hour or so. But for now, let's give you a rundown on why you're here, shall we?" Alyssa said, leading them out.

She, Jamilah and Samuel led them down a long hallway and into a side room where they found Nasira and Hasim standing there wearing long, black robes with a navy blue, red, green, white and gold sash tied around the waist. Hasim was no longer wearing his hat, his hair was actually neat for a change and Nasira had rolled her hair up into a bun.

"What's going on?" Gwen asked.

"Have a seat." Nasira swiped her staff and chairs appeared for everyone.

"Long story short: Serafina was not exactly what we thought her to be." She said simply.

Lindsay gasped. "Does that mean… she's a _traitor?_"

Hasim sighed. "Not exactly, Lindsay, not exactly. She was the_ informant _that let us know that Alejandro and Courtney were working for Radcliffe but…"

"They're not entirely satisfied with her trustworthiness, particularly her arrival style with an amputated Prince Ramon in tow…" Nasira.

"Amputated?" Lindsay began to look green.

"Trustworthy?" Heather raised an eyebrow.

"From what I've seen of her memories since she arrived, she is telling the truth when she says that she is on our side, but there may be repercussions for her otherwise…" Hasim said.

"I guess I can understand that…" Gwen nodded.

A man with a dark green ponytail and grey eyes peeked in, wearing the same robes as Nasira and Hasim did.

"Everyone, _it's time…_" He said, before ducking out.

They looked at one another before following.

* * *

As the Keepers took front seats in the room next to the Old Keepers, they saw the other Immortals going to sit in different places. Nasira, Hasim, President Tavares and the man that had called them up earlier were already seated in the jury-box style area with eight others wearing the same robes as they were.

Jamilah had gone to sit in another row with King Demetrius and Prime Minister Phillips. When she was there, she rummaged through a pocket and pulled out a disc. Tapping it twice, a projection of King Rohan appeared, sitting in a giant oyster-shaped throne, holding his bronze trident at his side.

Marcus sat with Queen Tiana and Prime Minister Morgan, Alyssa with President Hunter and Queen Adara and Sierra with some of their officials.

Samuel took a seat beside them.

"Haven't been to one of these inquiries in centuries…" he commented as the Keepers glanced over at him.

The room was soon quickly filled.

The room went completely silent as Alana was led in by two tall, muscular and overall imposing-looking men dressed in black robes over a white vest and black pants.

"Wait- does the general public know about Alana yet?" Gwen mused aloud.

"Nope." Samuel popped the 'P'. "We've managed to keep this under wraps so far. Hopefully it stays that way for a while…"

Izzy looked over at him. "This is just so weird…" She shook her head.

"You don't think I feel the same way?" Samuel raised an eyebrow.

The two men led her to the chair, where she sat with an unreadable expression.

"Alana Valeria Renaldi, you have a lot to answer to today, including the fact that you have lied to all of the magical governments for several years now. Keep in mind, that while you are not being tried for a criminal offence, you are still compelled to answer all questions truthfully under Almanian Law." The green-haired man said, standing up from his seat in the box and pacing in front of the raised platform.

"I am not being tried for a criminal offence, am I? One would never know it by my treatment prior to this inquiry…" Alana said flatly.

He ignored her. "Start from the beginning, please."

Alana rolled her eyes and crossed her legs. "First of all, _my name isn't Alana anymore._ It was legally changed to Serafina Louisa Dagnall as soon as my father was able. As such I have never technically lied to any of you as to my identity. I was born in the Redon region of this very same planet same as Alana is recorded as being. My birthday is recorded the same as Alana's- 17th July, 1957. I attended all of the Saurian Inter-Planetary schools, attended Valmont University also here in Saurian where I got my law degree and eventually got involved in politics. Technically, I have never lied to any of you about my past so you cannot charge me for that."

He nodded. "Very well then. Continue."

"Ever since I was born, my mother kept a series of diaries that she wanted to give to me herself. Obviously she didn't live to do that." Serafina said bitterly. "These diaries contained lots of her thoughts on raising me and such, little habits I had, things like that. It however began to take a darker tone in the months preceding her death."

The room grew sombre at this.

"She began to write about working for Radcliffe, how he came to her office when no-one else was there and _implied_ that he would hurt my father and I if she didn't help him. He didn't say it outright, but the threat was still there. If she put one toe out of line…" She made a slashing motion across her neck.

"I see. That's all from me." He sat.

Hasim stood up next. "Alana, or really Serafina then, as it is your legal name- when did you receive these diaries?"

"My father gave them to me about a week after my fifteenth birthday in 1972."

Hasim paced up and down. "What was your reaction to reading the contents of these diaries? What did it drive you to do?"

Serafina's eyes followed him as he paced.

"Naturally I was startled by their contents when I got to the darker parts. Then I began to get angry. Angry at Radcliffe for tearing apart my family at such a young age. _Angry that he stopped me from getting to know my mother._ I knew I had to do something to help take him down, so I began training in both magical and non-magical combat and improving my skills in multiple areas. Eventually my improvements caught Radcliffe's attention…"

"As he would. He observes fairly-well known people and if their skills appeal to him, he makes them an offer they can't refuse. He really needs to come up with new tactics…" Hasim commented.

"Indeed he does." Serafina agreed. "Some of the plans he's using now I can tell you he's done before. You would think he'd learn better. I would point out holes in them and he'd make even more holes…" She rolled her eyes.

"Thank you." Hasim took his seat and his wife stood up next.

"What happened when he first approached you?" Nasira asked.

"Well I was twenty-four when he first approached me. He gave me time to consider the offer. He will do that occasionally. He did that with the Martinez girl- Courtney."

Gwen twitched in her seat.

"I thought it over and I thought- what better way to take Radcliffe down from the inside? I-"

The building began to shake.

"What was that?" Heather stood up startled.

"Probably Radcliffe attacking. Totally predictable that he'd do it while we're all here…" Serafina shrugged.

Over with the Erendorians, Jamilah glanced at the disc with King Rohan's projection on it. Screams were heard behind him.

"What's going on?" She asked urgently.

"I don't know…" he floated up, holding his trident tightly.

Queen Vanessa was suddenly blasted across in front of him.

"Vanessa!" he swum over to her

Jamilah cut off the connection as a blast shook the building and several people were sent sprawling to the floor.

The two security guards released Serafina and escorted her out while everyone else evacuated the building.

As Marcus ran, he got a call.

"Okay, okay! We're on our way!" He hung up.

He grabbed Tiana's hand.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"Caillin is under siege and Honker is leading it!" He said.

Lindsay across the room heard this.

"I'm going with you!" She called out, sprinting across the room.

"Lindsay, no!" Gwen called out.

"Let her go!" Vesta shouted. "They'll need all the help they can get!"

"I'll go with you, Lindsay!" Akari floated after her.

Jamilah walked briskly over to them.

"Aequor has been attacked. My connection with King Rohan broke off right as it begun there!"

The remaining Keepers looked at one another before Bridgette stepped forward.

"I'll go with Jamilah." She said. Marissa joined them.

"Izzy and Aideen, you can come with me. We're going to need all the help we can get on Wispera!" Alyssa exclaimed, grabbing them both and leading them off.

Gwen and Heather looked at one another.

A blast made impact near to them, knocking them off their feet as they heard loud cackling from a familiar voice.

"YOU!" The two stood up and transformed.

"Well, well, well. _We meet again._" Courtney said coldly.

"Come on! You're acting like a total nutjob because of Duncan, of all people?" Heather folded her arms and raised her eyebrows.

"Oh please. It's not even about that pathetic little lowlife anymore. It's all about power…" Courtney held up her hands and sent a blast at them, which Gwen deflected with a quick frontal shield before flying after her.

"_Heather, come with me now! Earth is under attack as well!"_ Deanna thought, across the room.

Heather flew across, grabbing Deanna's hand as Hasim teleported the two of them out.

* * *

When the two of them arrived, it was to see the entire area of Hamilton, Ontario in chaos. People were running around screaming as random monsters and minions of Radcliffe fired spells and chased after them.

In the chaos, Heather found herself separated from Deanna.

"_Don't worry about me! Take care of yourself!"_ Deanna called out.

Heather nodded to herself as she flew up to quickly assess the situation.

She was knocked out of the sky by a large mutated plant.

The Earth Keeper made a three point landing and skidded along the ground for a bit, glancing up to see Dan in front of her smirking.

"Well, hi there, Heather! I see you've decided to join the party!" Dan cackled.

She raised both her eyebrows sceptically, before flying back into the air and putting herself into a battle stance.

Dan smirked before animating two nearby trees, which turned into tree-monsters, not unlike those in scary movies.

One of them lunged for her, but she used her hair, growing it out super-long and wrapping it around the trunk and smacked the other tree away with that, before throwing it at Dan who dodged.

She raised her hands into the air. "Two can play at that, buddy!" 'The ground started to rumble and half a dozen golems emerged from it, cracking their fists.

* * *

Izzy and Aideen arrived on Wispera to see Venom leading an attack on the presidential building and several people fighting back.

The current Fire Keeper snuck up behind him and blasted him out of the air with a flaming dragon blast.

He got up and turned around to see Izzy hovering above him with flaming fists, hair and literal flames in her eyes.

"Ah, Lady Isabella has finally decided to put in an appearance. Glad you could come." He said calmly.

"What did I say about calling me Isabella?" Izzy's flames got even bigger.

Venom shrugged. "What? It's fun!"

The two began to circle one another.

"I do believe that this will be quite fun…" Venom smiled.

Izzy raised an eyebrow. "For me you mean! YAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" She fired off blast after blast at him, which he kept dodging.

"Come back here, you cretin!" Izzy roared, eyes aflame and holding a flaming sword. She slashed it in a criss-cross motion, sending a flaming X at him which he swiped to deflect.

"Let's try that again, shall we?" He made the same motions that Izzy did, sending her back a few feet, but she quickly bounced back.

"This is going to really fun! AIE-YI-YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Izzy did a backflip in the air and hovered behind Venom, sending him crashing along the ground before he could react, making a deep trench as he did.

* * *

Lindsay and Akari arrived on Spectra just in time to see Tiana and several other government officials going in several directions around the ciry, engaging every enemy they could.

The General of the Spectran army was walking up and down several ranks of heavily-armed, scary-looking soldiers, shouting orders at them in Spectran.

Tiana watched this from the balcony above with a grim expression, her sceptre fully extended and glowing.

Carlos appeared behind her and gave her a reassuring hug.

"It will be fine, Tia. The good guys always win!" Carlos assured her.

"Let's hope this applies in our case!" Tiana exclaimed.

Lindsay flew up to the balcony while Akari went off to talk to Marcus.

"Queen Tiana, how are things going so far?" She asked.

"So far, so good. We're holding them back. I-AHH!" Tiana was cut off by a tornado ripping apart the balcony and sending both her and her boyfriend flying.

Lindsay managed to catch them both before they hit the ground.

"Perhaps I spoke too soon…" Tiana rubbed her head groggily as she stood up.

The three of them watched as Honker descended from the sky, smiling at them.

Lindsay growled as she shoved the Spectran Queen and Carlos behind her, getting into a fighting stance as she did.

"Oh, isn't this absolutely cute?" Honker chuckled. "Look at you, all trying to defend the Spectran queen and her boyfriend. Too bad it won't be worth it after all…" As he said this, Tiana and Carlos snuck away.

"Bring it, Honker." She cracked her neck and beckoned him forward.

"Gladly." He made a trumpet appear beside him, which he twirled with a mischievous smirk on his face.

* * *

Bridgette flew over to the coast of the Aequori kingdom by herself, looking worried.

"_What happened? Why is it so quiet? It's way too quiet for my liking…" _She thought as she landed.

The quiet was soon broken by the water beginning to act up rising into a large dome.

She looked on in amazement as she saw Marina fighting Montage to the best of her ability using a simple bronze staff. Magalie crouched behind her terrified.

"You will leave my home at once!" She demanded.

"Oh please. You think that you have a chance against me?" Montage chuckled. He materialised a glowing buzzsaw and threw it at her.

Marina managed to block it, at the cost of it severing her staff in half.

"Oh crap…" Her eyes widened and Magalie's eyes widened.

"Goodbye, Aequori princesses!" He opened his mouth to laugh but was cut off by Bridgette sending a giant hailstone at him, knocking him over into the sea.

She sent out a water whip to draw Magalie and Marina out to the shore, where they flopped over beside her.

"What's going on here?" Bridgette asked urgently.

"M-Montage completely wrecked the kingdom!" Magalie wailed. "We got separated from mum and dad. We don't know what's happened to them!"

"We were simply out for a swim in the palace gardens and he just took us by surprise!" Marina exclaimed.

"He's certainly not getting away with it!" Bridgette growled.

A water whip with a large ice dome headed right for them.

Marina managed to wiggle out of the way and Bridgette flew away, but it encased Magalie, who began screaming in terror.

"Sister!" Marina reached out to her, but she was too far away and seeing as she was a mermaid and as such couldn't actually walk, she lay there watching in terror.

Bridgette aimed an icicle at least a metre long at him, where it went straight through his arm.

He looked at the wound casually as if were merely a needle pricking him and wrenched the icicle out.

Bridgette's eyes widened at this as gas began to seep from his wound.

He began laughing like a maniac.

"Try again, because that's certainly not going to work!" He cackled.

The Water Keeper narrowed her eyes at him.

* * *

Gwen and Courtney stood in a deserted area, circling one another, never taking their eyes off their opponent.

The Energy Keeper stared at the woman in front of her responsible. It was clear to her now that Courtney was no longer the same person she competed with for the past three seasons.

"It's just you and me now Gwenny." She said with an evil smirk. "I'm actually glad you're the last one standing. It gives me the pleasure of ending your life with my own two hands. It's time I do what I should've done months ago." Courtney cracked her knuckles.

Gwen, with a saddened look sighed deeply, "Courtney, out of all of the things that I have ever regretted, I regretted what I did to you by far the most. I had a moment of weakness and it ended up costing what could've been a great friendship. I never wanted any of this to happen nor to cause you any harm back then. However, that was before you sold your soul to Radcliffe and decided to hurt my friends. What you've done to try and hurt Bridgette, Izzy, Lindsay, and even Heather, is something that I just can't let you get away with."

"You gone too far this time Courtney, and it's about time I give your C.I.T. butt the ass-kicking that it so richly deserves!" The Energy Keeper yelled, flying straight toward her with everything she had.

"BRING IT ON, GOTH GIRL!" The Anti-Keeper shrieked.

Gwen materialized two Energy blades and began swiping at Courtney who blocked it with a black Energy shield.

Courtney chuckled. "Try again, Gwen."

"Okay!" Gwen raised her hands above her head and when she brought them down, hit the Anti-Keeper with a large solar blast so powerful, it sent her skidding along the ground.

"AHHHHHHHH!" Courtney shrieked angrily as she flew up slowly, a black aura surrounding her and her markings glowing brightly.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!"

"Why, I don't believe I will, Courtney..." Gwen said calmly.

Gwen's calm attitude only served to infuriate Courtney more.

"That's that you think!" Courtney circled a finger and an energy disc appeared in her hand which she threw at Gwen.

Gwen just moved her head and the disc missed, slicing through a nearby tree.

"Your aim is a bit off!" Gwen rushed at her opponent and before Courtney could react had grabbed her and swung her into a nearby building, creating a Courtney-shaped hole in the wall.

Courtney was practically fuming now, the black aura surrounding her again and markings glowing again, but this time her eyes had gone completely black.

* * *

Back on Earth, Heather had just lifted a large boulder above her head and thrown it at Dan, smashing him into the ground.

She was sure she had won for a moment, but he flew up suddenly out of the hole and sent the boulder right back at her.

Before she could react, the boulder had been smashed to pieces by a blast of magic.

They both looked around startled to see the source of the blast.

They saw LeShawna standing there, looking like a female version of Rambo, and holding a large bazooka which was responsible for the magic blast.

Behind her came the former Total Drama contestants and the Keeper Grandchildren.

"You did not theenk we would let you fight this alone, did you?" Amelie stood there, smirking.

"And will not matter if she did. I will destroy all of you!" Dan declared, sending metal spikes raining into the air.

They all dodged them narrowly, some more gracefully than others.

Heather was suddenly grabbed by thick vines and thrown some distance away. Dan made a huge boulder, stepped on it and zoomed towards her.

The others wanted to go and help her, but they were soon surrounded by other minions of Radcliffe's.

"Take care of these things and let Heather handle Dan! I know I damn well ain't letting Radcliffe destroy the world my brother was just born into!" Kimberly growled, getting into a battle stance.

"So, Earth Keeper. You seem to suck at relationships, don't you?" Dan said as the two circled one another.

Heather raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, Dan?" She growled.

"Well, even after all this, you haven't made _a single friend_ among the Keepers. Everyone seems to hate you, don't they?" Dan chuckled.

"No they don't!" Heather's hair began to float around as if to attack.

"Oh, yes. Despite having such a great responsibility to share with them, you couldn't even become close, like say for example Akari and Deanna eventually did…"

"I don't _need_ to be friends with them!" Heather exclaimed.

"Of course not. But you also apparently don't need to be friends with Alejandro, do you? Pity. From what I've seen, you'd have made a good couple…" He taunted.

"WE WERE NEVR A COUPLE DAMMIT!" Heather shouted.

Dan had to dodge her hair as it shaped itself into hands and made as if to strangle him.

"Pity then. Seems that you're incapable of love then." Dan shrugged. "I guess you don't really need your heart then." He smirked a sadistic smile as he snapped his fingers and metallic claws, quite like Wolverine's emerged from them, except that they were much longer.

Deanna who was fairly far off, managed to sense her successor's thoughts as she saw this.

She rushed forward on a boulder to try and help Heather, but was blasted off the boulder by one of Radcliffe's minions…

Right into the path of Dan's claws that he was extending towards Heather.

Heather's eyes widened and she clapped her hands over her mouth, gasping in shock.

Deanna began to cough up blood as he twisted and turned his claws in her chest, ripping her heart out and throwing her body aside.

Many of the fighters did not notice this until someone let out a scream, pointing to the former Earth Keeper, who lay, eyes wide open on the ground, blood pouring out through the wounds in her chest created by Dan's claws.

While most people had poker-faces, Kimberly, Jane, Hiroshi and Hitoshi looked sick at the sight as Dan began to chuckle, amused at his cruel, sadistic act.

Heather was the first to fly over, followed by Amelie.

"Grand-mère me parler! Grand-mère!" Amelie cried out.

"Deanna? DEANNA!" Heather shook Deanna vigorously, but she did not wake.

Amelie began to cry. _"Non, non, non, non, non…" _She moaned.

Heather took one look at Deanna's body and saw Cameron running over to his cousin. He too began to shake his grandmother's body- but it was no use.

Deanna was dead.

_She wasn't coming back…_


	37. Final Battle Part 2

I've decided that there will in fact be a sequel after Keepers of the Elements is finished. I'm working on it and it will be published immediately after the next update!

HyperForce has drawn a picture of the first part of the Gwen and Courtney fight! Go check out his deviantArt gallery!

**Disclaimer:** See Chapter 1.

* * *

_Never again would she speak to her mentor…_

_She would never again hear her blunt advice when it came to everything…_

_Vesta had lost her friend from childhood…_

_Her grandchildren had just lost their grandmother…_

Heather began breathing in and out, willing herself not to panic or cry, memories of the brief time she had known the former Earth Keeper playing over in her mind as if to taunt her that none of those things would happen ever again.

"Well, well, well. Not so invincible now, are we?" Dan chuckled behind them.

Heather stood up slowly, taking deeper breaths, her hair whipping around her face, glancing back at Deanna's two oldest grandchildren who were huddled over her body.

Her ears pounded with deafening silence as she stood crying tears- not of sadness, but fury. All she could see or hear now was the cold-hearted murderer standing in front of her.

She shook her fists which immediately turned into blades.

"I want to KILL HIM!" Amelie roared, flying forward.

"**No."** Heather put up a metal barrier, cutting her off before she could reach.

"WHAT THE HELL HEATHER! **SERIOUSLY?**" Amelie shouted.

"Calm down, Melie. I'm sure Heather will avenge her for all of us." Cameron sniffled.

The Earth Keeper spoke quietly, but with venom dripping from every word she spoke as she dropped the metal shield and glanced back at Amelie and Cameron.

"Flexi Dan, _I've just about had it with you._ _You_ and your other _little friends._ You murdered Deanna- and that's something that neither I nor those on my side will ever forgive!" She lunged for him.

She punched him right in the face sending him flying hundreds of metres away from where he was standing.

Everyone else, villains and heroes alike stopped to watch the fight.

Her eyes began to glow dark green and her hair whipped around her head as she raised her hands above her head and the ground beneath her began to crack.

The ground all around began to shake violently, throwing several people off their feet as several thick vines cracked through the ground, also glowing.

"Do you think I care about your little tricks, Heather?" Dan asked.

"NOT WISE TO TAUNT ME NOW, FLEXI DAN!" Heather roared, a monstrous tone creeping into her voice.

"Never seen her so angry…" Adam and Leona said in unison as they ran for cover.

The others could only nod in amazement.

The vines zoomed around her and straight for Dan, grabbing him before he could react. She moved her hands left- the vines slammed him into the ground that way. She swung him right and slammed him into the ground again.

She flew towards him and punched him so hard into the ground, she went down with him.

"Ooh…" Hiroshi and Hitoshi were watching in awe, having inexplicably acquired bags of popcorn. Cameron and Amelie glanced at the pair with incredulous expressions on their faces.

"Where did you get that?" Rika raised an eyebrow at her brothers.

"MAGIC!" They exclaimed in unison.

Rika slapped them both around the head before turning back to the fight.

Heather was blasted screaming straight out of the hole she had created as Dan rose out of it, a sinister smile on his face.

"You didn't think I would just go down like that, did you?" He asked.

His arms and legs began to grow out extremely long and became rubber-like. Eight thick vines emerged from his back and began lashing out menacingly at their surroundings.

The Old Keepers' grandchildren, former contestants and others ran screaming from their various places of refuge to find other places to duck under.

"Mother of God_, it's The Slender Man reincarnated…_" Adam said shuddering slightly.

"Oh please, what are you going to do Rubberband Man?" Heather waved her hand dismissively.

Said vines began to sprout hands on the ends with long, thick thorns for nails.

Heather's eyes widened.

"Perhaps I spoke too soon…" She said as she dodged one of the vine-arms, which made deep holes where she had been standing seconds earlier.

Another vine lunged at her, but she dodged out of the way, summoning two swords as she did.

She bolted forward and threw them at Dan's multiple vine-arms slicing them off, but they just re-generated even larger than before.

"_Not good…"_ She thought, starting to worry.

Amelie noticed the change in Heather's facial expression and shifted. Rika, who was next to her, put out an arm to stop her.

"You're not going anywhere, Amelie. I know you want revenge and all, but if he's giving Heather a run for her money what chance do _any of us_ possibly have?" The psychic teen asked.

"I don't care! Zis… zis… _monstre_ needs to be DESTROYED!"

Amelie flew out from where she was.

"_Oh come on!"_ Rika face-palmed.

Dan shot out an arm and slammed Heather into a nearby building and making her crash to the ground.

Amelie zoomed over to Earth Keeper and helped her back up.

"Amelie, what are you doing out? Do you want to get killed too?" Heather exclaimed as soon as she caught herself.

"No, but I want to make sure _that creature_ is!" Amelie said as they flew out of the way to avoid Dan's latest attack.

When Dan spoke again it was with a more dangerous edge to his tone.

"Oh look at this! Two for one! The Earth Keeper and the late previous Earth Keeper's oldest granddaughter! This will be quite the power meal indeed!" Dan chuckled.

"_Power meal?"_ The two girls asked, glancing at one another.

He cackled as a large, warping portal appeared in his stomach area and thick vines snaked their way out darting for the two.

Heather managed to fly out of the way quickly enough, but Amelie was not so lucky.

The vines caught hold of her by the ankles and dragged her up and towards the distortion in Dan's stomach.

The French girl struggled and put up a fight, casting several spells in quick succession in attempt to free herself but it was futile.

"NO! I WILL NOT HAVE _TWO_ DEATHS ON MY WATCH TODAY!" Heather shouted flying forward and grabbing Amelie arms and with great effort, attempting to pull her out.

"Won't work." Dan smiled.

"Yes it- AAUGH!" Heather and Amelie screamed as both were absorbed into his stomach and the portal closed.

"Oh no. _Oh no no no no no…_" Cameron chanted.

"You might as well come out from wherever you're hiding, people. I've won and there's nothing you can do about it. In fact, I'm kind of eager for another meal…"

He turned to another building and ripped away the door to find Nadia, Leona and Jane inside.

They backed away nervously.

"It's no use. Where would you go, ladies? _Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide…_" Dan smiled, vine-hands snaking around from behind him towards him.

Nadia tried firing off a spell but Dan swatted it away with one of his multiple arms.

"Heh, heh, heh… _Oh boy…_" Nadia chuckled nervously.

Three vines reached out and grabbed each girl around the waist and arms preventing them from struggling- not that they didn't try.

But then something happened.

Dan stopped in his tracks, with a startled expression on his face, releasing the three girls.

He backed slowly out of the building and doubled over in pain.

He began screaming in agony and fell to the ground as Heather, holding Amelie with one arm burst through his stomach with a rock fist, surrounding the surrounding area in blood and guts.

She landed with a three point landing, covered in blood, guts and her hair hanging messily around her face, sweating and breathing heavily.

Amelie, sitting on the ground had a completely blank expression on her face.

"_Eww…"_ Kimberly, Leona, Hiroshi and Hitoshi said in unison, shuddering.

"Gross, gross, _dégoûtant,_ fétide… Urgh!" Amelie shuddered, going wide-eyed.

"Well Heather, I'd hug you, but you're covered in disgusting stuff…" Kimberly shuddered.

The Earth Keeper rolled her eyes at this and begun to use magic to clean herself.

* * *

Bridgette flew over to the dome that Magalie was trapped in and focused her magic on it, shattering it into pieces, flying the young mermaid out of the way of the falling debris and over to her sister.

She magicked up a large aquarium on the beach, filled it with water and lifted the two mermaids into it with one hand using a water whip while using her other hand to punch Montage back into the sea.

"Next time I come back, it will be with him gone!" Bridgette declared to them before diving into the sea after her opponent.

"_Now where did he disappear to?"_ Bridgette thought, after swimming for a while and approaching the outer boundaries of the Aequori kingdom with no monsters, abnormal events or Montage in sight.

As soon as she crossed into the kingdom itself, she encountered the mayhem that she expected.

Large, mutated sea-creatures were attacking the mer-people and destroying people left, right and centre.

And floating above it all was Montage, chuckling in amusement- at least until Bridgette formed a large block of ice, shaped it into a large baseball bat and whacked him with it, sending him careening to the ocean floor and crashing through the seabed.

He swum out quickly and the water around him began to form a whirlpool which he sent towards Bridgette who did not move quickly enough to avoid it.

Montage cackled madly as the whirlpool sucked her in.

Inside said whirlpool, all Bridgette could hear was the sound of the roaring water moving around her and she could barely see through it.

She then remembered advice that Marissa had given her in the past.

"_Water is a part of you now. It can no longer harm you. It doesn't control you. __**You control it.**__"_

She closed her eyes tightly and when she opened them again, they were a bright, glowing blue.

"_**I **_control the water. The water doesn't control me!" She declared, beginning to glow all over.

She began to spin in the opposite direction of the whirlpool and it began to weaken and disappeared.

"I am the real Water Keeper here. There's no room in all of these worlds for two of us." She said calmly.

"You're right, Bridgette. There's no room for the both of us, so I guess someone's going to have to leave, aren't they?" Montage raised his arms and sent them both flying up through the water, to the surface. The Water Keeper shook her hair out of her face before glaring at him with an expression of upmost fury.

She raised her hands behind her and brought them around, a large tsunami-like wave forming behind her.

"What were you saying now, Montage?" She laughed before sending the wave forward. It crashed right into her on the way towards her enemy, but she was unmoved.

Montage on the other hand was knocked right over.

She sent attack after attack right at him, which were so fast he hardly had time to move before the next one hit.

She thought of nothing else except destroying him as she unleashed the full extent of her powers.

The two mermaid sisters who were on the beach held each other close as they watched the fight in both a mixture of fright and awe.

"Well played, but you'll need to do much, _much_ better." Montage tsked-tsked, shaking his head and began to gloat, imagining his supposed victory over the Water Keeper.

However, he seemed to have forgotten a few important rules in fights- don't underestimate your opponent and never, _ever _take your eye off them.

She managed to sneak below him and shot him into the air with a highly-pressurised blast of water, which hit him hard enough to take off his limbs.

As water spheres encased each part, she narrowed her eyes as she clenched her fists and the spheres turned into ice.

She unclenched her fists and the limbs were shattered into pieces.

"Remember that I can regenerate, Water Keeper. Not going to work!"

"Oh yeah? Well I guess it's time to not just rely on my magic alone and take some advice that I read somewhere!" She said, thinking of the Elemental Book she now owned.

She froze the trunk of Montage's body and flew forward faster than she ever thought possible, ripping off Montage's head and quickly muttered a spell before coating it ice and shattering it into pieces.

Before Montage could regenerate, she flew back towards the trunk of his body and did the same that she did to his head, throwing the pieces behind her into the ocean as hard as she could.

"Spells to prevent regeneration and brute strength combined. He never stood a chance. Thank you, Keeper Linh!" She pumped her fist in the air as she flew back to shore to the sounds of Marina and Magalie cheering.

"You did it!" Magalie cheered as Bridgette made the aquarium disappear and the water in it rushed back into the ocean.

The two sisters giggled as Bridgette was swept along in with them and they hugged her tightly.

"I'm glad to have finally beaten him, but what about your parents and your kingdom?" She asked them.

"Oh don't worry about that, Bridgette." A voice said from behind her.

When she and the two mermaids whipped around, they saw Rohan and Cordula there, about waist-deep in the water.

"MUM! DAD!" In their rush to get to their parents they knocked Bridgette over, falling flat on her behind and into the sand.

"Daughters! We're so glad to see that you are alright!" Cordula hugged them tightly as Rohan beamed happily.

"Where were you? What happened? How did you get out of all that chaos?" Magalie fired question after question at her parents and they chuckled.

"We'll answer you later, Magalie, but Bridgette, we must really thank you for the help you've given us so far…" Rohan said, turning to the Water Keeper, who stumbled as she got up from the sand and fell back down again.

Magalie giggled.

"It's no problem. It's my job not to help and I'm quite glad to see Montage gone. I'm sure the danger isn't over yet though, so I'll go back with you to Aequor to help…" Bridgette said.

Rohan nodded and shook his trident, which began to glow softly as he lead his family and the Water Keeper back below the surface.

* * *

Izzy and Venom had somehow found their way to a volcanic area and making a whip of lava from it, the Fire Keeper lassoed her opponent and threw him straight into the volcano which towered above everything else there.

She roared and turned herself into full flame before chasing after him.

She hovered above the lava before being blasted into it.

Venom emerged from the shadows. "That was quick." He said, brushing his hands off- before he was blasted from below by an even more enraged Izzy, who emerged from the lava slowly, eyes literally aglow.

"I WILL NOT BE BROUGHT DOWN THAT EASILY!" Izzy roared, grabbing Venom around the neck and shook him roughly, but he seemed to remain unaffected by this.

"What the?" Izzy raised her eyebrows at this.

He turned himself into lava and reformed on the outside of the volcano, looking down at her.

Izzy's indignant expression, despite the situation, was still hilarious and Venom found it so, because he began to laugh at it.

"Oh, Isabella. Your surprise at this is rather hilarious, is it not?" Venom chuckled.

Izzy began to fume again.

"You'll find that I won't go down as easily either." Venom said calmly, before disappearing.

"Where the hell did he go?" Izzy whipped around, looking around her surroundings wildly. She was suddenly blasted from behind, slamming into the wall of the volcano with a loud crack, cracks appearing in the wall around her.

When she turned around she was clutching her nose and her eyes were watering in pain.

"You. You broke my nose!" Izzy exclaimed. "My adorable little nose!" She took her hands away and blood leaked from it.

"That's not all I'll break today. How about I break your neck as well. Huh?" Venom smirked.

"I don't think so…" Izzy sniffed and wiped her nose on the back of her hand and turned her hands into flame once again.

Spinning her hands around and around rapidly at her sides, she sent two flame rings at her opponent which he stepped aside to dodge, shaking his head at what he thought was a pitiful effort.

"This is just sad. The Fire Keeper one of the supposedly strongest people in the world is getting a major beat down by me. Pity really. I was hoping for a great big fight before I had the pleasure of taking you down…" Venom shook his head and shrugged.

"_I was hoping for a great big fight."_

"_I was hoping for a __**great big fight.**__"_

"_**GREAT. **__**BIG.**__** FIGHT."**_

"AHA!" Izzy snapped her fingers and flew out of the volcano and onto the surrounding land.

"Not running away, are we?" Venom said, amused.

"You wish, Venom." Izzy grinned before supersizing to the biggest height that she could.

"Two can play at that game, Miss Isabella." Venom grew large enough to match the Fire Keeper's height.

Izzy muttered under breath.

"Enough out of you, Venom. HIYEAH!" Izzy jump-kicked him, creating a crater where he landed.

Venom got up quickly, lunged for his opponent and they began to wrestle with one another.

He punched her in the gut and she staggered back a few steps with such impact that the footprints she left could be used as swimming pools.

Izzy's hair stood on end, flaming fully as her eyes glowed bright red and fists became alight.

"Take this! And this! And some of this!" Izzy swung him into a nearby abandoned building.

"And- AHH!" Izzy drew her hands back as Venom secreted an acid-green liquid from his shoulders, where she had grabbed hold of him.

"Never expected that extra ability of mine now did you?" He chuckled as Izzy shrunk back to her normal size, clutching her hands in pain.

"Now, goodbye, Miss Isabella." He raised his foot above her.

Izzy glanced up and when she did, it was with fury in her eyes.

"DO. NOT. CALL. ME. _**ISABELLA!**_" Izzy punched him in the foot, sending him sprawling.

Zooming towards him, she turned herself into pure flame and rushed forward, flying straight through his head at a faster speed than a bullet.

Venom shrieked in agony as Izzy emerged through the other side, covered in blood and brain matter, smirking in satisfaction as her opponent fell to the ground, shrinking to his normal size, dead.

She hovered above him as his body dissolved and began to feel the full extent of her injuries.

* * *

Lindsay and Honker were flying alongside each other high above the skies of Spectra firing off spell after spell at one another they both eventually blasted each other out of the sky, both slamming hard into the ground.

Lindsay groaned as she got up.

"Lucky shot, Honker." Lindsay growled, clenching a fist.

"Likewise, Air Keeper." Honker brushed himself.

The Air Keeper lunged for him and threw him into a tree, smashing it clean into two.

"I could be back in Canada now, relaxing with my BFF's, but no. You and Radcliffe had to make my life a living hell!" Lindsay snarled.

"Nope. You made your own life a living hell by becoming the Air Keeper. Not my fault at all!"

"Like I had a choice in the matter!" Lindsay snapped, sending several Air spheres at him with a swipe of her hand.

"But now, I don't mind. It helps me defend people from creeps like you!" Lindsay caught up Honker in a gust of wind and starting slamming him over and over into the ground.

He darted forward and slammed her into a tree.

"Now we're even in that regard." Honker smirked.

"Uh-huh. Sure." Lindsay muttered sarcastically as she ploughed him into the ground.

"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Honker flew up out of the hole created and summoned his trumpet.

Twirling it in his fingers once, he blew a sonic wave at Lindsay, which bowled her over.

"AUGH! THAT SOUND IS HORRIBLE!" Lindsay screamed. "More than Paris Hilton and Rebecca Black in a duet!"

"More you say? Okay then!" Honker made his trumpet even louder and Lindsay's eyes began to water with the pain.

"MAKE IT STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPPPPPPPP!" She screamed.

As she did, she let loose a sonic wave that knocked Honker back.

"Urgh!" Lindsay shook her head to clear it.

Then she (for once) got a brilliant idea.

"I've got a brilliant idea!" She exclaimed.

"That would be a first!" Honker laughed.

"Oh you'll regret laughing at me soon, Honker!" Lindsay smirked mischievously as she held her hands above her head, concentrating on forming sonic waves.

"As if your pathetic little sound waves would work. You're even more of an idiot than what I thought before for thinking you could beat me!" Honker laughed, sending a blast of razor wind at her.

Lindsay closed her eyes and dodged, her concentration on the spell not wavering.

"Let's see if _your_ ears can withstand THIS!" The Air Keeper brought her hands down and sent the sound waves barrelling towards him.

"AUGH!" He fell to his knees. "It sounds like Paris Hilton and Rebecca Black did a duet featuring Miley Cyrus and wannabe Canadian Idol contestants!" Honker's ears began to bleed.

Lindsay gave him a right hook, sending him slamming into a nearby building.

Using her telekinesis, she repeatedly slammed him into the ground.

Over and over and over.

"Who's the stupid one _now,_ Honker? Huh? WHO?" Lindsay shouted.

She blew him over the edge of a cliff and watched what would happen to him.

Down below, Tiana had activated her sceptre and twirling it, raised it high into the air.

As it and she glowed brightly, the ground below her begun to crack.

As it did, several skeletons emerged from the ground.

Many of Radcliffe's fighters began screaming in terror and scattering from them.

Honker fell right into the middle of the skeletons and they began tearing him apart.

Tiana glanced up at Lindsay and gave her the thumbs-up as Carlos tore through the crowd of Radcliffe's minions on his motorcycle firing spells left, right and centre.

* * *

"Had enough yet, Gwen?" Courtney growled.

"You wish, Courtney!" Gwen blasted her back effortlessly. "Now, have _you_ had enough?" The Energy Keeper smirked.

"NEVER!" The Anti-Keeper smiled a demented smile before dashing forward, grabbing Gwen by the wrists and throwing her into a tree, where she flopped to the ground.

Before she could get up, Courtney blasted her in the back, making her fall back down.

"I win!" Courtney chuckled, hovering above her and laughing.

"Oh no you don't!" As Gwen stood up, Courtney was knocked back by the sheer force if the power that the Energy Keeper was now radiating.

"You've taken things way too far, Courtney." Gwen's fists crackled with electricity.

"Duncan may have kissed me and I let it happen, but there's not a day I don't regret that." Gwen gave her opponent a left hook that sent her sailing through the air.

"I tried to apologise." She punched Courtney again.

"I tried to make things right." Another punch.

"I understand if things could never be the same between us after that, but I never expected you to go this far in your quest for revenge!" Another punch that slammed the Anti-Keeper into a nearby wall.

Courtney struggled to get up and as she did, she focused both of her hands on creating a black energy beam towards her opponent.

Gwen countered it with her own silver energy.

The two beams cancelled out each other at the same time, sending both females skidding along the ground.

The two rushed at each other and began hand-to-hand combat.

Gwen punched Courtney straight into the nose and she backed away, howling in pain.

"AGAIN?" She roared, dabbing at her bloodied nose.

"You really ought to make it less of a habit of getting punched in the nose…" Gwen commented.

"And more of a habit of taking you out!" Courtney snarled.

"Sorry Courtney, but I'm going to have to disappoint you on that one." The Energy Keeper said, grabbing hold of her opponent by the arm and electrifying her.

Courtney looked charred and her hair stood on end after this.

"THIS ENDS NOW FOR YOU, GWEN!"

"Nope. I'm afraid this is the end for you, Courtney. I'm sorry that I got with Duncan, but I'm not sorry that I did…" Gwen gripped Courtney's wrists and glowed for a few seconds. As she did, Courtney's marks began to fade away and black magical energy flowed away from her body and disappeared.

"…this." She finished as she rendered Courtney unconscious.

Gwen looked down at her sadly as she put Courtney in the care of some officials.

"I'll be back to take her back to Earth later." She said, before zooming off.

* * *

"Time to step into the fray myself it seems." Radcliffe stood up from his throne and disappeared.

The other Keepers and everyone they were fighting alongside appeared on Earth.

"Mom and I took on José and Santos ourselves back home!" Sierra exclaimed.

"This isn't over yet. We've still got the Big Bad himself to take care of…" Gwen muttered.

"Yeah. _Ouch!_" Izzy's injuries began to hurt even more so Bridgette took her aside to tend to her.

"What happened with your fights?" Lindsay asked.

Everyone in the group went around talking to each other and catching up.

"Wait a minute, where is Deanna? She'd love being in the centre of all this!" Vesta asked Gwen.

Heather and the Old Keepers' grandchildren stiffened at this.

Vesta noticed and began to get worried for her lifelong best friend.

"Heather, where is Deanna?" When Heather glanced down, Vesta turned to Amelie and Cameron.

"_Where is your grandmother?"_ She asked, beginning to panic.

The two looked at one another and stood on either side of her leading her into the nearby building where they had hidden Deanna's body.

Everyone else outside jumped when they heard Vesta's horrified scream.

Heather glanced down again and shuddered.

"_What happened Heather?"_ Bridgette asked softly.

"_Flexi Dan happened…"_ Heather muttered, sending her memory of what happened to her fellow Keepers.

Some people around them began to scream as a blinding orange-brown light appeared in the distance.

The Keepers tensed as they saw an all-too familiar figure approaching them from the distance, his hair loose and billowing in the wind.

Everyone else ran for cover and watched from wherever they could.

The Keepers all took a battle stance.

"Believe me you five. I have no intention of losing to Keepers again. Prophesies can be incorrect, you know." Radcliffe said calmly, twirling his staff.

"It won't be this time. Ladies, NOW!" Gwen fired off an energy beam, Bridgette sent several icicles, Izzy sent a flaming dragon, Heather sent several rock fists and Lindsay sent a tornado, but Radcliffe flew out of the way, managing to avoid them all.

"Try that again!" Radcliffe appeared behind them, blasting them all to the ground.

"_How do we beat him now?"_ Bridgette asked.

"_I'm not sure. This move might not be a particularly easy spell to pull off, but we need to try and try quickly!"_ Gwen thought back. _"We're going to need a distraction…"_

"_And how do we do that?" _Heather asked sceptically.

"_Oh, oh, __**meeeeeeeeeee!**__ I'm great at providing distractions!" _Izzy exclaimed, hovering excitedly.

She flew up in front of Radcliffe.

"Hey, Raddy! Would you like another ugly scar to go with the one you already have?" Izzy asked, holding up a flaming sword.

"**Don't call me that!" **

"_Gwen, are you ready with that plan? Izzy can only distract him for so long- despite her mental state!"_ Heather exclaimed.

"_Oh yeah. I remember the spell that's gonna help us out here in beating him once and for all. It's something I worked on ages ago. I'm going to need to borrow some of your own energy…"_ Gwen explained.

Izzy dodged out of the way of each and every one of Radcliffe's spells.

"Your aim is a bit off!" She taunted.

"Whoops! Almost got me there! _Heh-heh…_" She chuckled nervously as one of the spells almost hit her wings.

"_Izzy, get down here, NOW!"_ Gwen called her.

Izzy zoomed away as fast as she could to her fellow Keepers.

"_I want you all to focus on all the magical energy you have and let it build up in you." _Gwen instructed. _"I'm going to channel all of it through me and it should create a beam so powerful it will completely obliterate his magic and in effect, his life force!"_

"_This crazy idea of yours had better work!" _ Izzy exclaimed.

"Well Keepers. Are you ready for me to put an end to your brand of magic for good?"

Gwen glanced up at him. "Nope. But we sure are ready to put an end to _yours!_" She exclaimed, hoisting her hands above her head.

As she did, beams of light from each Keeper standing behind her were drawn into her hands, merging with her own energy.

"As if your little light show is going to take me out…" Radcliffe chuckled.

"Oh? I think you'll find that this is more than a light show." Gwen smirked.

She brought her hands down and the light sphere grew even bigger.

The other Keepers strained to keep their magic flowing as the Energy Keeper focused the sphere on their enemy.

"Goodbye, Radcliffe." Gwen said calmly as she released the sphere.

Before Radcliffe could dodge, he was hit full-on by the spell and he screamed in agony as it passed through him, taking all his magic- and his life with it.

He was dead before he hit the ground and as his staff landed next to his body, it dissolved into dust.

The Keepers sunk to the ground, exhausted and wings drooping.

There was a moment of deafening silence before everyone ran out from where they were and straight towards them, cheering.

"YOU DID IT!" The Old Keepers' grandchildren were the first to arrive, followed by the four remaining Old Keepers, the former contestants and several other random people.

"You beat zat bastard zat has been causing trouble for so long!" Amelie cheered, jumping up and down excitedly.

"I know, right?" Jane squealed.

The two jumped up and down, screaming in excitement and hugging one another- before they realised what they were doing and quickly turned away for each other, furious expressions on their faces, however, both girls were blushing.

Hiroshi and Hitoshi noticed this and started snickering at them.

"Congratulations, all of you." Vesta smiled at them sadly. "Heather, Deanna would have been proud of you."

Heather bowed her head. "I know, but I somehow always thought she'd come through. I mean, she was such a trooper! And I hardly knew her!"

"I've known Deanna for all of our lives and trust me; this is the way she would have wanted to go out…" Vesta walked away to talk to her successor.

"Hey Heather, why the sad face? You just helped take down the biggest magical baddie in history! You should be celebrating, from what I've learned of magic so far…" Heather turned around to see DJ approaching her.

"I know, Deej, but it's a pyrrhic victory for me…" Heather sighed, sitting down on a nearby rock.

Some way off, Gwen had went back to Saurian and brought back a still unconscious Courtney to the scene, with Duncan walking beside her.

Soon magical authorities/hospital personnel came to take her away and as they did, Duncan just looked at his unconscious ex and smirked.

"Well I'll admit, both of you weren't exactly what I expected, but in the end I guess I picked the right girl after all huh, Pasty?" Duncan taunted while placing his arm around Gwen.

In response the Energy Keeper grabbed the arm and twisted it behind his back ripping it out of its socket.

"Don't think you're off the hook, Duncan!" She told the punk who could see even more hate in her eyes than Courtney ever had. "This whole thing is your fault to begin with. You're the one who kissed me and caused Courtney to go down the path she went! I may have been at fault too but at least I felt sorry for what I did. You felt nothing; all you cared about was getting another medal in your _Babe Olympics..._"

"Oh uh, you knew about that?" Duncan chuckled nervously.

Gwen glared down at him and he flinched. "Did you think I wouldn't watch the reruns? You convinced me that Trent was insane, played on my feelings, and kissed me just so you could have two women! I can't believe I ever was attracted to you. There is only one guy on this dumb show I should be with and I see that now." Gwen said as she looked at her former boyfriend who wasn't far off, watching them.

"Trent, you know I suppose I _could_ do something to him right now but personally I think you deserve this honour more…"

"You're really going to let me get a shot?" Trent asked, walking over to her.

"_Actually,_ I was thinking more like nine..." Gwen smirked, flying aside to clear Trent's path to Duncan.

"Heh-heh… Elvis, buddy, let's talk about this ok?" Duncan chuckled nervously as Trent cracked his knuckles.

Trent responded by giving Duncan nine right hooks. The last one launched one of his teeth out of his mouth and knocked him onto the ground. The tooth rolled over towards Heather who picked it up. "Oh I could use this. Thanks, Duncan." She told him as she placed it in her pocket. _"Not that I'd ever. As if I'd want anything from that douche in my mouth..."_ The Earth Keeper thought in disgust.

"Oh and one more thing. If you ever call me _'Pasty'_ again, then I'll see to it that you experience the most painful vasectomy ever imagined." Gwen threatened, transforming her hand into an energy blade and pointing it straight towards his crotch. _**"Got it?"**_

Duncan, who at this point had wet himself, simply answered by nodding vigorously.

_"Good."_ Gwen ended it by giving him a kick to the kiwis, far worse than any that Courtney had ever delivered, causing him to pass out from the pain.

* * *

One more chapter and it's all over! (For now…)


	38. Aftermath Afterparty

Well, this is it. After 1 year, 5 months and four days, Keepers of the Elements is finally complete. It's been a long road, from first planning this in my granny's living room to posting this last chapter in my mother's kitchen…

**Disclaimer: **See Chapter 1.

* * *

The next day, the Keepers were reunited with their families once again.

"Mom! Dad!" Lindsay ran squealing over to her parents who engulfed her in a hug, followed by her sisters.

Izzy was shrieking like a madwoman as she ran towards her mother, father and brother and tacked them to the ground, laughing.

"Well, I'm guessing we don't have far to go skiing anymore…" Bridgette's mother held her daughter at arm's length to get a good look at her and chuckled.

"I guess not!" Bridgette laughed before pulling her mother in for a hug.

"Gwen, you were totally awesome!" Her brother Matthew gave her a high-five.

"My little girl… all grown up!" Gwen's mother hauled her in for a bone-crushing hug.

"Mom…" She moaned, embarrassed.

"Though not quite in the way I expected…" Her mother trailed off as she hauled her daughter in for another hug.

Heather's family stood some distance away from her, looking as if they did not know what to say.

Her brother Damien was the first to break their silence.

"YOU. WERE. _**AWESOME!**_" He exclaimed, running up to her. "I heard all about what you did and I even got to see a bit of it! You were all: BOOM! SMASH! _POW!_"

"_How?_ How did you see any of it?" Heather raised an eyebrow.

"Mr Wilson set up some sort of spell so we could see how you were since some of the others were getting worried…" Jillian explained, walking up to them.

"Can you do some magic? Pleasssseeeeeeee?" Damien begged Heather.

"Oh, why not?" Heather shrugged, snapped her fingers and a large chunk of the earth beneath Damien rose up into the air.

"THIS IS SO COOL!" He shouted in joy.

"It took you this much trouble to get any respect from Damien, did it?" Mrs Aoki walked over with her husband.

"Yeah, it took me all of this to get him to show me some respect… At least he knows I can dangle him upside down with vines if he even attempts to prank me again…" Heather snapped her fingers again and the chunk of earth Damien was floating around on sunk back into its original place.

"About that… You're not going to abusing your powers in our house once we get back home you know, young lady!" Mr Aoki interjected.

"Don't worry about that, dad. In fact, once I get back home, I'll show you all what I can really do if that make you feel any better…" Heather offered.

"That probably could work…" Her father nodded.

"But I do mean it about the vines if he bothers me again though!" Heather exclaimed.

* * *

Gwen, Lindsay, Izzy, Bridgette and Heather were hanging out in the Keeper Den a few weeks later, doing various activities in their rooms.

Gwen was throwing a small energy sphere up and down like a ball in one hand while reading her Elemental book.

Izzy sat on the floor by the fireplace in her room, making large, elaborate shapes with the fire in there.

Lindsay was floating above the ground in a meditation pose that Akari had taught her and she used telekinesis to feed herself a package of strawberry yoghurt.

Bridgette had turned her room into a winter wonderland and was having a snowball fight with an ice statue that she had animated.

Heather meanwhile was in her room, swinging on a swing that she had made of thick vines and attached to the ceiling, thinking deeply.

"_This experience has really changed me, changed us all, and changed the world!" _She thought. _"I wonder what it would have been like if we hadn't been chosen as Keepers. Who would've filled in our places? How would we have reacted…?" _She paused before thinking again. _"Would Deanna have been alive? I know Vesta told me not to feel bad about it but I still do…"_ The Earth Keeper sighed, her hair falling loose from its short ponytail.

It was three weeks after their final battle had been concluded. Deanna's funeral had been the week before now.

_Having known Deanna for over sixty years and thus longer than anyone else, Vesta had given the eulogy._

_All the Immortals as well as the rulers from the various realms had been in attendance, sitting with Heather's fellow Keepers in the second row of the auditorium they had occupied in Hamilton- Deanna had returned to her hometown in death. She and Deanna's family had been sitting at the front along with the remaining Old Keepers._

_When Vesta had finished speaking, the leader of the memorial ceremony had asked if anyone else wanted to talk about Deanna and many people stepped forward._

_Deanna's husband Troy stepped up immediately after Vesta, looking as if he still could not believe that he was now a widower._

_Her triplet sons Tony, Adrian and Eric spoke together._

_The youngest of Deanna's grandchildren, Jacques, who would turn 12 later that year, spoke on behalf of all her grandchildren, voice holding steady until he walked off, bursting into tears._

_And last, but not least, it was Heather's turn to speak._

"_I know I haven't known Deanna for nearly as long as most of you in here have, but she really felt like family and a really good friend to me. She was also a great mentor. No one else could have possibly done a better job training me as she did. And I vow that when the time comes for me to train my successor, I will most certainly bear Deanna's methods in mind. She always knew the best way of doing things with me, despite the fact that I wasn't very willing to learn at first…"_

Heather snapped out of her thoughts as she heard Gwen's thoughts breaking through to her.

"_Heather, what are you doing? Samuel's waiting for us above ground! He says he has somewhere to take us…"_

"_Okay, okay. Keep your hair dye on. I'm coming…" _Heather muttered, leaping to the ground and making her way out.

* * *

When they arrived at their destination- the headquarters of the television studio responsible for Total Drama, it was to lots of cheering and applause. There were large crowds around the buildings in hand with several cameras in hand. News agencies from around the world had already started to gather with their even bigger professional cameras and annoying reporters in tow.

"Come on, let's get you inside before these vultures break the barriers…" Samuel rushed them inside.

"You're going to have to get used to that everywhere you go now…" He shrugged.

The Keepers all looked at one another strangely before shrugging and following him down a hallway and into an auditorium.

When they walked in, they were almost bowled over by the applause and cheers that started when they appeared.

The surviving Old Keepers and all of their family members were there- siblings, children, grandchildren, daughters/sons-in law…

People who worked for the television company were also there, cheering as hard as they could.

The former Total Drama contestants and Chris were also there.

Even some officials from the various magical planets were there.

"So the now Earth-famous Keepers have returned…" Mr Roberts beamed at them.

"Congratulations." Milah smiled from where she was sitting with Travis, Kimberly, Talia and little Ethan in her arms babbling excitedly. Kimberly and Talia reached over and played with the little curly black hair that he had and he babbled even more, brown eyes shining brightly.

"Thanks so much. We couldn't have done it without a lot of your support…" Gwen spoke.

"You can forward our cheques in the mail later." Janna joked, sitting next to her mother. She wasn't as tall as her parents or older brothers and had curly black hair just past her ears. Her twin daughters Marla and Carla had their shoulder-length braids with white and black beads at the end of each strand in a low ponytail.

Several people chuckled at this.

"But for now, this is just a time for all of us to relax." Jane said from where she sat with her father, mother and siblings.

"Goodness knows we all need it…" Amy muttered.

"OH MY GOSH! I want your autograph…" Vanessa squealed, running over to Gwen.

"And you must be little Vanessa.." Gwen asked, kneeling down to her level.

"You bet I am!" Vanessa grinned, going in for a high-five.

Amy and Jack chuckled at this.

"Okay then everyone. Let's get this celebration started!" Nadia hoisted a can of grape soda into the air.

Music started playing and everyone began dancing.

"So now that this is over, what are we gonna do now?" Hiroshi asked, semi-complaining.

"I don't know about you, but I'm going to go do that James Randi test. I've already applied to be tested and I could think of a lot of things that I can do with a million U.S. dollars…" Rika smiled.

"Oh really? So you're a psychic?" Noah's bored voice droned behind them and they turned to see him there with a glass of juice in his hand. "Prove it."

"Dude, you just saw that magic exists! How can you not believe that?" Hitoshi asked.

"Quite easily." He replied simply, taking a sip of his drink. "I see lots of flashy magic spells but reading the mind and other things like that- not really. They could be just fake tricks that fake psychics use all the time!"

"Being psychic isn't all about reading minds you know. Shall I prove it?" Rika put down a cupcake she was holding and focused on the cynic.

_"Hitoshi, put my cupcake, __**down.**__"_ She spoke without moving her lips as her brother tried to steal her food from behind her back.

Noah raised an eyebrow.

Rika's brothers laughed, finding Rika's annoyed expression hilarious and tumbled around the floor laughing loudly while their parents watched them with flat expressions and Akari chuckled in amusement.

Mr Roberts walked over to Shane where he stood next to his family, chatting animatedly with them.

"Ahem. Excuse me…" He tapped on Shane's shoulder and he along with his family turned to acknowledge them.

"In light of recent events… I really don't want this to be seen as exploitation… How do I put this?" He started.

"Go on…" Shane nodded.

"Since it's come as much of a shock for most of Earth knowing that magic exists, I think it would be a great idea if the company produce one more season for people to get to know different kinds of magical beings, perhaps mixing them with non-magical beings…"

"What of it then?" Shane raised an eyebrow.

"Well, Chris has gotten rather old and mean-"

"HEY!" Chris yelled indignantly, not far off.

Mr Roberts rolled his eyes. "As I was saying, he's simply not fit for television. I've also seen your background academically in Media Studies- I go over records for people coming to "observe" the production process and I've seen how you've acted in this entire situation. I don't know much about magic, but I found it admirable."

"Thank you, but you still haven't gotten to the point…" Shane said flatly.

"Very well then... How would you like to be the host of the newest season of Total Drama?" Mr Roberts asked.

Chris fainted and several people in the background laughed at him, Samuel loudest of all.

"Whoa…" Kyra looked at her brother in awe.

"It's a good opportunity for you I think, son." Shane's father Jonathan Jones nodded in approval.

"But it's a lot to consider…" Anya protested.

"I know that. Here's some information you'll need. Potential plans, contact information etc. Feel free to let me know when you've come up with a decision…" Mr Roberts handed over a large envelope and walked off.

Shane blinked at the envelope before putting it away.

Meanwhile, Izzy, Lindsay, Marla, Carla and Leona had somehow decided that it was a good idea to do a karaoke session and all of them had microphones, belting out an absolutely horrible rendition of Bootylicious by Destiny's Child- with Izzy in the lead.

_**"I don't think you ready for this jelly, I don't think you ready for this- hey!"**_ Izzy pouted as Rika plugged out the microphone, twirling it in her fingers.

Aideen and her brothers who were sitting at a nearby table laughed loudly at this as William brought over of a bottle of their favourite drink- Scotch.

"We were really having fun!" Marla and Carla pouted.

"That wasn't very fun for our ears though…" Nadia muttered, walking over. Kimberly and Kyra were close behind.

"Let's see _you_ do a better job then!" Leona huffed.

Jane and Amelie snickered.

"Leona, have you forgotten that Rika is in her school's choir?" Jane asked.

"And that Kimberly, Kyra and Nadia are very good dancers?" Amelie pointed out.

Leona face-palmed as Izzy led the wannabe performers off the stage.

The music to Rihanna's Shut Up and Drive began to play loudly. Rika took the lead, the other three girls standing behind her.

"I didn't know Rika could sing!" Lindsay exclaimed in awe.

Akari chuckled. "Yes, Lindsay-chan. Rika can sing. I've tried for years to persuade her to enter Canadian Idol once she turned 18. She did on the 13th April this year and still won't enter…" The former Air Keeper shrugged.

"She never really seemed the type though…" Gwen commented, walking over with some others.

"Yeah. I think I'd have expected more of the diva attitude from Kimberly to be honest…" Heather shrugged.

"She's a different kind of diva." Marissa walked over, contributing to the conversation.

"She's more into the fashion side of things. In fact I do believe she will be attending StellaVita Modelling Agency's Modelling Camp in Radnor during the summer before she comes back here to study at university..." She said.

"She'll flip a gasket if they tell her to cut her hair though. She loves her hair." Milah contributed to the conversation, walking over to them. Travis had Ethan at the moment.

"You'll never need Aideen to help heat the house if the heating's busted, that's for sure." Marissa said jokingly.

"That's right. We have two teenage girls in the house. The main sources of heat in our house half the time are their hairdryers..." Milah remarked dryly.

"One thing's for sure, this is going to be the most eventful summer ever. And I shudder to think of what school will be like when we go back…" Gwen shuddered.

"At least we won't be able to complain that our lives are dull, right? Isn't that a good thing?" Izzy popped up suddenly from behind her.

Gwen nearly jumped out of her skin.

"DON'T DO THAT!"

"Jeez. Sorry…" Izzy pouted and went off to bother someone else- Chris.

The former host saw her coming and tried to run, but was cornered by several of the former contestants.

"Hi there Chris. I do believe that you put us through hell for three whole seasons. You don't think we'd forget about that, did you?" LeShawna cracked her knuckles.

"This isn't really necessary, is it?" Chris asked nervously.

"Oh, _it is…_" Sierra muttered, flexing her neck.

"AIE- YI- YAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

Everyone went running out of the way as Izzy sped through, leaving a small blaze behind her and carrying a large bowl of punch.

Doing a backflip with the bowl in her hands, somehow managing not to spill a single drop as she did, she landed perfectly on Chris' shoulders and spilled it all over him.

The entire room began to cheer at this and a spotlight was even shone on the humiliated former reality show host.

"Our lives most certainly won't be dull indeed!" Bridgette exclaimed.

"Let's just kick back and relax, shall we?" Heather, Bridgette, Gwen and Lindsay sunk into nearby chairs but didn't have long to relax as a red and green blur sped past them, knocking over their chairs and sending them flying.

_**"IZZY!"**_

* * *

_**And with this final chapter, Keepers of the Elements is finally finished!**_

This is a happy, yet sad occasion for me and I'm sure it will be for some of you as well.

I would really like it if all my readers would review and tell me what you liked most about this story. All your favourite things. I want to know which were your favourite original characters, favourite scenes, what kind of powers you'd like to have if you could from this story, I want to hear it all! Feel free to ask anything about the writing and planning of this story as well and if you review, I'll gladly answer!

If you have any constructive criticism to give, I'll be glad to hear that as well. I'm always glad of a chance to improve my writing skills.

So, with that I say (to the tune of the Out Of The Box end song)- _so long, farewell to you my readers!_

_**Now onto the sequel!**_


End file.
